Thirty-three years after leaving the role of Victor Cassadine on General Hospital, and joining Days of our Lives in the dual roles of Tony and André DiMera, Thaao Penghlis is back in Port Charles as one of the few Cassadine's who survived the Ice Princess story.

During his time away from the ABC soap, the Australian-born actor did a heck of a lot more than act. When he wasn't in front of the camera, he traveled the world, with an emphasis on uncovering ancient mysteries of the Middle East.

Now, Phenglis has turned his life's experiences into the memoir, Places: The Journeys of My Days, My Lives, in which he shares the stories of his early years in America and his journeys to Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Morocco, and Israel.

What was the inspiration that made you want to write the memoir?

A number of years ago, I was writing stories on things I wanted to unravel as far as mysteries, d so I would take journeys to Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Morocco, and Israel. I found it fascinating. Because I had been to Egypt 10 times, Discovery wanted to do a series about my travels. Two weeks before I was supposed to start the project, a new executive guy came in and scrubbed everything and started fresh.

I wrote the book because I already had some stories. I presented it to a publisher and she liked the material a lot. She said, "I would like you to do stories about your beginnings. How you came to America."

So that's the opening chapter. It's a long chapter. It deals with all the things that happened to me in my '20s in New York , like how I met [acting coach] Milton Katselas and how he was a huge influence on me.

How working in the art world, I met Jacqueline Kennedy, and also how I met Robert Redford. She wanted those stories told, and I am glad I did.

I was fascinated to learn that you had tea with Jackie Kennedy. How did that happen?

I was studying Chinese art and English 18^th Century art in probably the greatest gallery in New York. My boss was the leading connoisseur of Chinese art. At a party, someone had introduced us, and because I was young and passionate about history, he said, "Why don't you come and work with us as an apprentice and you can learn?" I said, "Okay."

I went there one day and Claudette Colbert came in. She thought I was cute and she said to my boss, "Have Thaao join us for lunch." He said, "No." They left, and I was really pissed off. Then there was a knock at the door, and when I opened it, it was Jacqueline Kennedy with her two body guards. She asked me if she could see [our collection] because we were appointment only. I asked her if she wanted tea. She said she would love it.  I called upstairs to the houseman and I told him to bring tea. Since I was only the apprentice, he scoffed at me and laughed. So, he came down in his shorts and as the elevator opened, Jacqueline Kennedy walked by. He was in such shock. He closed the door fast and went up and put on his uniform. He came back with the best silver.

I sat down over an hour with her telling her where the pieces came from and their spirit, the Chinese believe the artist is always with the piece. She left and my boss came in and said, "Did anyone important come in?" I said, "Jacqueline Kennedy." He said, "Sure, sure, sure," and walked upstairs to his office. Two weeks later, Jacqueline Kennedy called and wanted to buy a piece. He said, "I'm the owner of the gallery." She said, "I want to speak to Thaao." He was so pissed off at me.

At what point does the book start talking about your travels?

The Along the Path chapter is the opening, the stories of my youthful years. Then Dodging Bullets is about my time on Days of our Lives.  From then on, the 23 chapters after that are all about my journeys.

Does it have photos in it?

Lots.  When I was describing things, I thought it was important that people could see what I was talking about.

Are they pictures that you've taken?

Yes, and a friend who was with me, a fellow actor, or my guide, but most of them are mine: climbing Mt. Sinai, going into Syria, where I had my passport thrown into my face when they saw I was an American citizen. They asked me why I would come to Syria,  and I said, "Because I am interested in your history." He said,  "Our history?" I said, "Yes, the one before you." So he threw my passport in my face. I wasn't lying. I was looking at the history of the ancient Greeks,  the Romans, the crusaders and what took place.

It sounds as if your life was often in jeopardy.

I was followed around by secret police. Even in Egypt they tried to entrap me. One night, I went to the Great Pyramid at Giza at night by myself to see it under the full moon. I was grabbed out of nowhere and dragged toward the pyramid. The police saw me and said it was so dangerous to be there at night because people disappear in the sand.

What other stories are in the memoir?

I have other stories like following the holy family's exodus out of Jerusalem, escaping Herod into Egypt. I followed the route up and down the Nile where they landed. Those places are now sacred places. So I explored that for two weeks. I called that The Great Escape.

Each chapter has its own story. I write about going to Alexandria, going to the great poet Cavafy's house. In Jordan, I went through Petra, I write about the history of how it was discovered by a Swiss explorer named Johann Ludwig Burckhardt in 1812, and how he brought this hidden city to the West.

The stories are about the people who crossed my path. The dangers. How Hezbollah thought I was an Israeli spy and pulled me out of the car and put me against the wall in Southern Lebanon when I was continuing my exploration of the Crusades. Thank god for the United Nations. They saved my ass.

Even the Mossad in Israeli thought I was a terrorist, so they grabbed me at the airport. I stayed calm. They followed me around and the next thing I knew they were flashing badges. I told them I wanted to be in Jerusalem for Christmas Eve. I was going to the holy church where Christ was born and he was resurrected. I had been wanting to do that all my life. I love that story. That came out well.

You go into some dangerous areas. How do you prepare yourself?

The way I prepare myself is to understand the culture I am going into. I learn about its history, so I am not ignorant when I go into a country. I know its customs, I know its religious beliefs, and I don't tread on that. I have taken many trips along the Nile.

My next trip was going to be Iran to start my next book, but I didn't have enough time to get the visa. It takes six weeks, so I am going to Cuba instead and I am going to begin my second book called Culture and Cuisine there.