PART II: SCENES AND STORIES FROM OUR TRAVELS IN THE 1990s

1990: Italy

In ’53, I had visited Italy with my parents. Then in ’73, Bernie and I had “air hopped” from Rome to Venice en route to Dubrovnik in Yugoslavia. By ’90, with more time and money at our disposal, we were ready for a more-leisurely three-week Italian adventure by car, bus, and foot. The photos and stories here capture our favorite parts of that trip.

Rome

▲▼ During this first week of our trip, we stayed in Rome’s Hotel Gregoriana, located near the top of the Spanish Steps. It proved to be a fine base of operations.

As always—and as in every other place we ever traveled— we did Rome on foot, soaking up its marvelous history, culture, and food far from the maddening crowds that piled out of tour buses.

In the shots of Bernie (at the top) and me (below), on our first full day in Rome, we’re savoring the vast, sweeping views from Hadrian’s Mausoleum, aka the Castel Sant’Angelo.

▼▼▼  During our time in Rome, we rambled all over its famous hills, including must-see places like The Vatican’s amazingly decorated hallways, lush garden, and wonderful museum.

▼ Here we are at the Colosseum on our 2nd visit, after being there in ’73. Even in ’90, there were relatively few tourists compared to today’s mob scene.

▼▼ Two more shots of us at the ancient, imperial palaces on the Caeline and Palatine Hills; and remains of buildings in the Imperial Forum.

▼ ▼ During that first week of our trip, we discovered many marvelous lunch spots. Below, we’re enjoying a lovely outside dining room in Trastevere, an historic neighborhood on the other side of the Tiber River from the more-famous parts of Rome.

▼▼ Likewise, on two different days,  we enjoyed different but equally delightful alfresco restaurants in the center of the Piazza della Rotondo, near the ancient—and still spectacular—Pantheon.

Pompeii and Herculaneum

▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ In 1952, my parents had taken me to Pompeii and Herculaneum (which were just beginning to be open to the public). Naturally, I wanted to go back with Bernie. We enjoyed several lovely days in scenic Naples, but the two ancient towns that the volcanic eruption of Vesuvius had destroyed and buried in 79 AD were the highlight of that stay.

Lake Bracciano and Cerveteri

▼ ▼ ▼ We rode local buses on day trips to Lake Bracciano and the 3,000-year-old Etruscan necropolis at Cerveteri.

I had just finished the manuscript of my first historical novel, Rubies of the Viper, which contains two scenes set in this 3,000-year old Etruscan necropolis near the coast north of Rome. After extensive research on this place, I knew exactly what to expect, so while we were there, I felt like a tour guide, telling Bernie about it and “showing him around.”

Positano on the Amalfi Coast

▼▼ Bernie and I enjoyed two lovely al fresco breakfasts and relaxing days in a small hotel clinging to the cliffs of Positano, a sweet spot tucked away off the famous Amalfi Drive.