It's a big old bear of a mountain that does a lot of growling and never hurts much of anyone. I've never heard of it killing anybody, though its eruptions are frequent. Vesuvius, on the other hand.. Vesuvius is scary. When I visited Naples, I was struck by how dark and threatening it looks, standing right in the middle of that marvelous bay. It only erupts every several decades, and it is due for another big one soon - and five million people live within its shadow.