This article is classified "Real"
The Statue of Liberty is a quite famous statue that is located on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, but how many people know where it actually came from? It was designed by Frederic Auguste Bartholdi and the inner structure was built by the same genius who built the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Gustave Eiffel. Actually, the first time it was fully erected was in a small town on the shore of the Mediteranean Sea. I had the unexpected pleasure of visiting this town while on a Med Cruise during the first half of 1989 while in the US Navy. I say unexpected because, when I heard where we were going, I was ignorant of the significance, and thought we were on our way to a rinky dink fishing village. The ship had to anchor outside the harbor, due to the shallowness of the water, so we took a "water taxi" to port. After being told that the main part of town was at the other end of a dirt road, me and my friends took a walk there. At the town hall we saw a small scale version of the original statue, all done up in bronze. Beautiful! We soon found out why it was there. Incidentally, the face of the statue really is Mr. Bartholdi's mother. The people in this town were very friendly. They had only met sailors from one other Navy ship before us, which was a good thing since natives tend to get sick of us after we've been around too much. It was in this town that I learned that Europeans ate Pizza with knife and fork. Also, I learned something about leaving the silverware crossed on the plate is a sign of dissatisfaction with the food. I'm not sure how true this last bit was since I never had the nerve to try to find out. The girls in this town are friendly but not in the way that sailors like, I'm afraid. The sunrise and sunset over the Med are beautiful. So are the girls! While there, you can also take a wine tasting tour at the local, family owned and run, vineyard and winery, or visit the local Roman ruins. There are plenty of taverns, restaurants, and even a nightclub to try out. All in all, a very nice place. Very peaceful. I'm glad to have been there.