Memories of The Way We Were D.D. Rocca
D.D. Rocca - (the first D is for Donal and the second one is a state secret) has lead a life at sea principally as a radio operator on a range of merchant vessels with so many worldwide adventures that would make a swash-buckling pirate of the high seas feel inadequate. Memories of The Way We Were is a vast memoir which spans Rocca’s Italian heritage – his father Egidio came to Ireland to repair the GPO in the 1920s and met his mother Agnes – to the author’s own travels around the world. His epic voyages begin with the merchant ship Livorno – which brings him to a pantheon of exotic locations that would seem excessive in your average Bond movie – Gibraltar- Algiers – North Africa – Piraeus – Haifa – Jaffa and back to Dublin.
These adventures are peppered with numerous anecdotes comprising near misses and close shaves which include being almost fired on by a French warship, breaking anchor in the middle of a storm and almost being dashed into a harbour wall, to name but a few. There are also dangerous escapades of a personal nature such as a tense visit to a prison in Baton Rouge delivering papers to a pair of crew members who had been arrested the night before for a drunken brawl, to hiding a puppy he had bought on impulse in Spain from the Captain of one of his many ships.
It’s probable that the author of this Boys’ Own Tale has been to more places than all of the TV globe trotters put together – and just like the Wickers and Palins there’s a good deal of self-deprecating humour combined with an attention to detail that makes the book such memorable jaunt through the world as it was in the mid twentieth century. The Navigator on one of their shore leaves gets lost and language barriers often lead to misunderstandings.
There are numerous pictures of the ships he has graced with his expertise but pride of place goes to his late wife Rita in her wedding garb on the back cover and the happy couple together on their big day. Despite his astonishing adventures, Rita is obviously is and was at the centre of his life and the book in many ways is a love letter to this wonderful woman.
John White
is a freelance Musician and Theatre Director
He has reviewed for a number of publications including Irish Theatre Magazine
June 2023
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