When I first went to Europe in 1976, I traveled with Betsy, and tried to visit many places as she had, and to see as many of the same attractions as she did. In reading and rereading Betsy and the Great World, I found her descriptions of Venice alluring and on one trip, when I had some extra time, tried to track down and photograph many of the sites from the book.

I have to give a multitude of thanks for the help of addresses in Sharla’s book, without which it would have been impossible to find the House of the Yellow Roses. I look now on the photo that I took and I see the grillwork over the windows, as Betsy noticed it upon her arrival in Venice. And the scrap of a sidewalk is there, just in front of the door that would allow Betsy and Marco to walk to the Guidecca each evening to watch the sunsets. It is located in a neighborhood which is off the beaten track and retains the charm that Maud describes so lovingly in her book.

Betsy had what I dream of having: six weeks in Venice. Venice is a complicated city, so easy to get lost in, so easy to find wonderful little piazzas or charming cafes and so difficult to fit in all the magnificent museums and splendid churches. Betsy had the luxury of time, not just to visit the major sites, but to capture the spirit of Venice. She loved St. Mark’s Square and the throngs of people, the orchestras, the pigeons, the music. You can still eat at Florian’s. Of course the cups of coffee that she lavishly consumed now soar to prices unimaginable for her time, but the music is free and if you wait until late in the evening, the crowds dissipate and the square regains the splendor it lost in the hordes of tourists by day.