Thirty Years Ago Today...May 1, 1978, Italian Style.

That would have made me 30 years younger.

DateLine: Thursday, May 1, 2008 - 1:57 PM CST

It's hard to imagine that Monday, May 1, 1978 was 30 complete years ago. That's a large stretch of time. A portion of life that has brought a slew of experiences..except Blogging, of course, which is a newer phenom on this Millennium.

30 years ago, is more than 1/2 my life ago...You can figure 'The Math' there.

But on that Date in Fleeting Time, if my memory doesn't sway, I was vacationing in one of my favorite places: Italy. May 1 is a national holiday there and much of Rome was closed to siesta, commemorate and observe. The tour guides told we Americana Tourismos that we could either take a train to Florence or to Pompeii for an outing.

Being awed by what happened to Mt. Vesuvius in A.D. 79 since I was in Second Grade, I immediately decided the trip to The Volcano would fulfill one of my childhood dreams. Many of the tourists I knew ventured to Florence instead. However, on their way to Florence a funny thing did not happen. Their train was stopped in an open crop-field and the Red Brigade (the Italy Terrorist Group of the time) boarded the train, holding the People up; making them lay on the floor and stealing purses, wallets, IDs, identities, passports -- everything.

I, on the otherhand, had opted for the open countryside and the southern part of 'The Boot,' where I happily shopped my afternoon away and brought back many souvenirs that still remind me of that infamous day so many years ago...

Italy: Love it or leave it. History is made there every Day.