By extension, Vesuvius may be viewed as genius of the region's food and wine. Cultural vacationers brought the demand for lavish meals. Aquaculture flourished. Oysters were shipped from Brundisium on the Adriatic Sea to plump in the Lucrine Lake until required. The luxurious villas along the coast often included fisheries. Pliny the Elder praised the region's fecund soil, then died in Vesuvian ash.