He nodded.  "The man I was an apprentice at the time was, well is a quite well-known artist and friend of the Pope.  I believe he was going to be working on a painting for a young cousin of the Pope and there was something about a work that my teacher was being asked to do for the Vatican Council.  I'm Catholic of course, so it was quite an honor to even be in the room with him.  I was introduced, blessed, and ignored for the most part after that."  He chuckled.  "We went from Rome on our Italy tour."

"There were terrible sickness and death all around there from the conditions in Naples.  Cholera was a big killer.  I was too young to really take it seriously and we were not there for a long time.  Maybe a week or two, I think.   The government was trying to make it safer, so there was a lot of construction going on.  The people I got to visit with said it had been going on since the 1850s."

"They said people were leaving in huge numbers but the city was still huge.  Coming from a rural area of Scotland it was quite overwhelming for an 18-year-old.  It was what drew my muse to dance.  The volcanos in looming over the city like monsters waiting to attack. I think I have all kinds of drawings of the Egg Castle, or rather named Castel dell'Ovo. It isn't the only castle there but it caught my eye and I just liked it."

"Did you know under Naples there is a whole set of caves and catacombs? Lots of more drawings dowen there. Along with meeting some interesting hardworking people. And lots of various kinds of women. You can imagine that when I wasn't drawing, I was learning about getting very drunk and my first love, and my second, and on and on..." He chuckled taking another sip from his cup.