Here it is Juvenal talking, about 20 lines in it switches to an "Umbricius" character speaking.
001 to 009 → 010 to 020
1 Quamvis digressu veteris confusus amici
- confusus = confusus sum
- digressu gerund abl.cause, means?
- veteris amici genitive possession
2 laudo tamen, vacuis quod sedem figere Cumis
- laudo: 1P S of laudo, laudare. object of laudo (the amicus) is implied
- quod = because
- Cumae a place about 3 hours' drive south of Rome along the South coast of Italy. Next to the Bay of Naples
- Bay of Naples bay south of Rome, near Mount Vesuvius. Fertile (because of the volcano) and aesthetically pleasing place.
- vacuis ... sedem figere Cumis ... unum civem donare Sibyllae - indirect statement with destinet
3 destinet atque unum civem donare Sibyllae.
- Sibyllae dative indirect object
- priestess of Apollo, who works at a temple near Cumae
- "to give a citizen to the Sibyl" means to go to Cumae, because if you go there then Sibyl "gets" one more person
- not meant to be exclusive, Romans would get it
4 ianua Baiarum est et gratum litus amoeni
- Baiae in the Bay of Naples, a bit south of Cumae. A resort place for the Romans, rich people had villas there. Clodia liked Baiae.
- amoeni secessus - gen.quality
- litus litoris 3dc NT
- gratus grata gratum - pleasing
- amoenus a um - beautiful, pleasant
5 secessus. ego vel Prochytam praepono Suburae;
- secessus 4dc genitive
- Prochyta an island in the bay of naples, near Baiae. barren island
- Suburae a part of Rome, in a valley and quite slummy back in ancient Rome.
6 nam quid tam miserum, tam solum vidimus, ut non
7 deterius credas horrere incendia, lapsus
- incendium, incendi(i) NT
- lapsus lapsus MS
8 tectorum adsiduos ac mille pericula saevae
9 urbis et Augusto recitantes mense poetas?
- Augusto August is summer in Italy. Rome summers were notorious, if you could afford to leave then you would.
- mense poetas - sometimes there were people reciting outside and if you didn't want to hear it then you would close the windows. but since it was summer if you close the windows then it would be too hot
There is nothing about Prochyta that is so bad that you would think Subura is better
Although distressed by the departure of an old friend, I however praise [him]. Because, he decides to establish a seat in empty Cumae and to present one citizen to the Sibyl. It is the door of Baiae and a pleasing shore with a beautiful seclusion.
Even I put Prochyta before Surbura, for what have we seen that is so miserable [and] so lonely that you would not believe [it is] worse to dread fires, constant slips of the ground or a thousand dangers how does this work? of a cruel city and reciting poets during the August month?