Seeing Bits Of Pompeii At The National Museum

Our big boss had given 2-month museum passes to everyone in the organization by way of a year-end gift. He gave us all cds of a Singapore singer for 2009. I gave my passes away to the interns. The man and I already have museum membership, rendering the big boss' thoughtful gesture more useful for others.

We finally found some time to saunter to the National Museum to view the exhibition, Pompeii: Life in a Roman Town in 79CE. But not before we skirted and circled the ridiculous Sunday traffic in town to park along the narrow road at the back of the museum. The traffic jams apparently lasted all day. We had such a tough time getting to brunch at Artichoke. Good lawwd. Don't tell me this is the start of the Chinese New Year traffic jams?

It was a small but compact layout. I was quite fascinated by the plaster replica of a bread loaf. The notes explained that it was a common bread loaf buried in volcanic ash and somehow carbonized over time. This was certainly a more cheerful sight than the replicas of plaster casts of human figures frozen in time.

It was a good recap of a city that is now no more as a result of nature's wrath. Well, the capricious Mount Vesuvius. It was a nice light stroll. Of course, nicer still, would be to stand at the site at Naples. Clearly, my earlier visits to Italy were sadly lacking in cultural education. Pathetically, I only covered Rome and Milan. I've not had a chance to visit the site where Pompeii once stood.