Down by the beach, down by the sea,
letting the breeze blow gently over me,
down by the beach, down by the sea,
with my feet in the water,
and living peacefully as can be,
peacefully in the Mediterranean,
watching the boats upon the horizon,
with a drink in my hand,
and my thoughts and my plans,
my plans to head to Rome,
my plans to see the Coliseum and the art galleries,
my plans to walk its beautiful streets,
and dine out in the sunshine,
eating pasta in all its flavour and varieties,
yes, my plans,
my plans to explore the culture,
and the life of those who lived and died,
because of Vesuvius,
and who are captured in their ashen state so hauntingly,
and I,
I will remember them,
and how such devastation can so quickly take life away,
and I will imagine the ash clouds filling the air as people flee,
and I will imagine people as they try to flee to safety,
but without success sadly,
for how powerful nature is,
and how great nature is,
and how fearful of it we can be,
and I, I will walk off the solemnity of Pompeii and Vesuvius, and its deadly bombardment of ash in beautiful Tuscany,
and I will think of all these things with my feet in the sea,
In Italy,
and as I stand there,
Ciao I will say as I wave to the waves,
and I will be as happy as can be,
yes, happy,
happy with an ice-cream in my hand and my plans,
for there is so much beauty and so much fascination,
and so many beautiful things,
and places to explore in magnificent Italy.