The campaign for the Italian peninsula began in July 1943, with landings on the southern coast of Sicily. More Allied forces came ashore in Salerno in September, then on the beaches at Anzio and neighboring Nettuno on January 22, 1944, when 36,000 Allied troops established the so-called Anzio beachhead. The Allies met fierce German resistance and became entrenched on muddy coastal plains and in high mountain passes as they moved north toward Rome, liberating the city on June 4, 1944.

Of the 60,000 to 70,000 members of the Allied forces who died in the Italian campaign, 7,860 or close to 8,000 are buried on these lawns that slope gently above a large reflecting pool. A marble wall in the chapel is inscribed with another 3,095 names of the missing. Among those buried here are William and Preston Kaspervik, one of 30 sets of brothers in the cemetery, and Ellen Ainsworth, a nurse killed by enemy fire while moving surgical patients to safety in a field hospital; she is one of 16 women interred at Nettuno. As former president Dwight D. Eisenhower said when he dedicated the cemetery in 1956, hose interred here rest tranquil and secure in the friendly soil of Italy.

Veterans Day Commemorations

As Veterans Day approaches, travel-inclined descendants of World War II veterans might set their sights on visits to the Sicily-Rome American Cemetery or the other military cemeteries that the American Battle Monuments Commission maintains around the world. In total, the ABMC commemorates 207,621 U.S. war dead from World War I and World War II. The most visited site is the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in France, with a million visitors a year. The website www.abmc.gov provides information on ABMC’s 26 cemeteries and 32 memorials and monuments, as well as a searchable database for service members interred in the cemeteries.

If you go to Nettuno

The Sicily-Rome American Cemetery is at the eastern edge of Nettuno, off Piazzale John Fitzgerald Kennedy. It’s about a ten-minute walk from the train station, where trains from Rome arrive at least hourly; the trip takes an hour and ten minutes. The cemetery is open daily except December 25 and January 1 from 9am to 5pm. An excellent visitor center details the Italian campaign with maps, photo displays, and videos, and also profiles some of those commemorated in the cemetery. In addition to the burial area, the cemetery includes a chapel, a map room in which bronze and marble reliefs show Allied World War II operations in Italy, and a couple of beautifully tended gardens.

Nettuno’s seaside old quarter, the Borgo Medievale, is an enticing warren of lanes and squares. Zero Miglia on Piazza Marconi is a local favorite for a seafood meal, accompanied by a bottle of Cacchione, the region’s white wine. I Nobili, practically next door, is the stop for gelato. To enjoy some time in the sun, you can rent a lounge at one of the many beach clubs that line the sands of Nettuno and neighboring Anzio. Ex-pat and local guide Paula Clark ( mc********@ao*.com ) can show you around town and provide lots of insightful commentary.

The post At Rest in Italy appeared first on Traveling Archive.

In November 1975, I was Manager of Publicity for Continental Airlines, in our corporate HQ at LAX. As a lifelong aviation aficionado, and an even more proud American citizen (I was born in London!) I’ve always been intensely interested in American politics, and so knew that our president (whoever it is) today always flies aboard an impressive, specially equipped B-747. Back then Air Force One was a B-707, tail number 26000. On both sides’ of the fuselage, in large letters, it said UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. The public knew it as Air Force One. I was thrilled when I discovered that anytime it flew to Los Angeles with the president, the aircraft parked at Continental’s hangars. Because Continental’s  PR team was always involved in working with the media when Air Force One came into LAX, I got to know the Secret Service guys who played a major role in these visits.

As time went on I developed a kinship with one of them (I still have his business card) and each time the aircraft came to LAX, I felt he “trusted” me more and more. So, I plucked up my courage and said, “The next time AF One flies into LAX, could I get a tour inside?”

He said YES!

In the Fall of 1980, AF One flew in with President Reagan and, along with Al Feldman, the new CEO of Continental, we got to take a tour inside one of the most famous airplanes in the world. As we stood at the bottom of the steps to go on the aircraft, there was a big, hefty looking USAF Master Sergeant who, in a loud voice and in VERY firm tones, said “Do not take anything once you get on board. We’ll give you a Gift Pack before you leave.”

There were several things that surprised me. After entering by the door nearest the nose, and immediately by the right hand side, there is a sort of huge keyboard with the telephone connections to most of the world’s key leaders. I’d expected there’d be some sort of bedroom. There wasn’t. I also noticed, as we headed towards back of the ‘plane, it got less comfortable. We were told “that’s the media section.”

It was THIS B-707 – tail number 26000 – that flew Kennedy to Dallas in 1963. It was referred to as Air Force One when the president was aboard and, at other times as SAM 26000. Costing $8 million back then, she entered service in 1962, and was used by President Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon. On March 24^th, 1998, the plane was retired to the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright Patterson AFB, near Dayton, Ohio.

As I stood in the exact spot aboard the aircraft where Johnson was sworn in as President of the USA in 1963, an eerie chill ran up and down my spine, as I visualized that now famous scene and photo. Appreciating I was actually on board THIS unique B-707, my emotions and feelings were heart tugging and “tear inducing.” Here I was standing in the same plane that President Kennedy had gone to Dallas in, but had returned to Washington in a coffin.

As a longtime travel journalist my work has taken me to 51 countries where I’ve been privileged to see and do countless “things” that many people can only dream about.  However, as I toured Air Force One that day in 1980 at the LAX Continental Airlines hangar, I’d  never before experienced such powerful thoughts about life, happiness and how fortunate I was, to live and work as a naturalized American citizen in this marvelous country called America. Departing this classic aircraft (with my little Gift pack!) and knowing its unique part in American history, I knew this would the most incredible experience of my life.

The post The Most Incredible Tour I’ve Ever Taken – On JFK’s Air Force One in 1980 appeared first on Traveling Archive.