The pictures below are my favorites from the trip. For more pictures of each area (still many good ones), click the links below.

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Positano
Sorrento, Amalfi & Ravello
Pompeii
Rome - around the City (includes The Pantheon)
Ancient Rome
The Vatican

(Here's the story of my first trip where I met my family.)

The Story: I promised my distant family the last time I was in Italy that I would bring my Dad back someday. I wasn't sure it would actually happen. But fortunately my Dad kept the trip at least on the back burner over the last couple years, and made it clear it was something he really wanted to do. For the most part everything went better than I could have imagined, including all of my family members being alive and kicking, and as gracious as ever. We spent 3 nights in Positano, 2 nights in Sorrento and 3 nights in Rome. Highlights included 2 wonderful dinners from our family, hiking several thousand feet up to Ravello, Pompeii, The Vatican and ancient Rome.

There were also a couple of coincidences, one of them rather mind-boggling that I can only atttribut to Positano magic. First my friend from high school, who now lives near Stuttgart, happened to be in Rome visiting relatives with his wife - who is German. I hung out with Mike, drinking beer at the Pantheon the night before my Dad came. Then he was still in town when my Dad and I made our way back to Rome 6 days later. We had an incredible dinner at a local place that his wife's family recommended, and I got to meet his wife and kid for the first time. A really nice time and Mike is an excellent tour guide. Made us feel like we had a leg up on the average tourist.

2nd coincidence: while in Positano, my Dad and I were enjoying our 2nd meal courtesy of our family, at their hotel - The Covo di Saraceni. One of the Clementes, who runs the hotel, told us some guy with hair like my Dad's was looking for us. Apparently this guy had a picture of me, and he was going to come back when we were at lunch. Ok. I had absolutely no idea who this could be. Then Clemente points the guy out on the street. He's talking on a cel phone and I don't recognize him at all. Clemente asks if we want to let him up, or if we basically want him to shoo the guy away. I take a small leap of faith and say "send him up". As far as I know no one should be trying to serve me a subpoena for any reason.

So the guy sees us, immediately points to my Dad and says "I know this guy." As it turns out, he is lifelong friends with my Dad's brother Chris. A few yers ago I had seen Chris, my uncle, for the first time in many years when my work took me to New Jersey. I gave Chris a bunch of Positano stuff, told him and my newly met cousins about our family history, and Chris took a few polaroids. So fast forward a couple years. Chris found out his friend, Steve, was coming to Positano. Chris gave Steve most of the Positano stuff he had from me, including a picture of me, with instructions that Chris go to the family's hotel and check it out. And that is how a friend of my Dad's brother, who had met my Dad in the 70s, wound up at our table in Positano with a polaroid of me. He, his wife and two friends just happened to be in town on the same day. Really crazy. Right after meeting us, Steve called my Dad's brother on his cel phone to tell him the mindboggling news. Chris had no idea my Dad and I were even going to Italy, much less be there in Positano at the same time. Ultimately my Dad ended up talking to his brother for the first time in years. I talked to Chris as well and it sounded like he was still in shock at the wonder of it all. My Dad and Chris have talked since my Dad got back to KC, and vowed to stay in touch. We had another very nice meal that night courtesy of Steve, his wife and companions. All this in our first day and a half in Italy.

I'm really really happy that my Dad and I took this trip, in a lot of ways that I'm still processing. I feel like I know my Dad better than I have in a long long time. Also, and this is hard to explain without sounding too mushy or not mushy enough, but I think I see my Dad more as a human being than just as a FATHER that I'm contractually obligated to. A loving, caring, flawed, sometimes frail, sometimes scared, funny, charismatic, adventerous, adaptable human being. In short, a whole lot of myself. It kind of scares me to think that if it wasn't for the happenstance of this incredible family connection over there, my Dad and I probably never would have had the gumption to do something like this. I encourage anyone I know--who may live in another city, not have grandkids to bond over, or for whatever reason be not as close with their parent(s) as they could be--to try something like this. You won't regret it, and you'll kick yourself for not doing it sooner.

Click a picture to see a larger view.