From the 17th to the 21st of June, 29 children from years 6 and 7 went to the bay of Naples in Italy to see the towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum preserved exactly as they were nearly 2000 years ago by the eruption of Vesuvius. They also had the opportunity to learn about Volcanoes, Italian culture and a little bit of the Italian language.
The children left Taverham Hall School at 2 am on the Thursday morning and drove to Gatwick before flying to Naples airport. On arrival they were confronted by 34 degree heat – “a good job I had arranged to visit Solfatara, a volcanic crater with jets of hot steam pouring from the ground” commented Mr Hamilton!
After a quick stop for some water the group visited one of the largest amphitheatres in Italy in the nearby town of Pozzuoli. It was fantastic as the children were given the opportunity to explore the rooms and tunnels underneath which would have housed the gladiators and the animals. After this the group made their way to the hotel in the beautiful seaside town of Sorrento. The children certainly enjoyed dipping their feet in the cool sea after a long, hot day!
Friday was spent exploring the remains of Pompeii. It was a fantastic day and the children learned so much about the Roman way of life. On Saturday, the morning was spent climbing to the top of Vesuvius and walking around the crater. The boys and girls discovered some amazing facts about how the volcano has changed over the years.
The afternoon was spent at the Roman town of Herculaneum which was even better preserved than Pompeii because it was not destroyed by the volcano but merely buried by the pyroclastic flow. It was amazing to see a wooden boat preserved from 2000 years ago and the pupils could look at it and imagine the people trying to escape into the sea from the volcano.
After a busy and action packed three days the group took the Hydrofoil over to the beautiful island of Capri where they spent the Sunday shopping, eating , relaxing and playing in the sea before their final night in Italy back at the hotel.
The group travelled back by plane on the Monday and returned to Taverham Hall just before 7pm.
It was a fantastic experience which the children will remember for a lifetime. “I know I will” said Mr Ross Hamilton.
Here’s what the children had to say about their trip to Naples:
“Italy was interesting because witnessing history first handed was just amazing.”
“I loved: experiencing what life was like then, learning new words, being with my friends. It was FAB.”
“I have always seen amphitheatres on TV and it was great to see them in real life.”
“I loved Pompeii as we had learned about it in Geography.”
“The food was great.”
“Awesome time. I loved the streets and the bakers and the bodies encased in plaster.”
“I love Italia.”
“I had an awesome time in Italy, it was insane.”
“I think it was a great experience. It was very interesting and I loved it all.”
“It was epic.”
“I loved the volcano and Capri.”
“It was a great experience; it was interesting, fun and very, very hot.”
“The scenery was beautiful and the trip was amazing. We learnt loads while we were there.”
“Pompeii was amazing, how they still had the main street.”
“Best trip ever!”
“It was the best trip the school has done.”
“Pompeii was amazing! It was huge and mindbogglingly like where we live but much, much older.”
“I enjoyed going to the beach and building a sandcastle.”
“It was great, I knew all the answers to the questions.”
