2 c -Water 2/3 c Sugar 3 Pears; ripe 1 ts Almonds; chopped (opt) Vanilla ice cream (opt) Chocolate sauce: 2 Chocolate squares 1 tb Butter 1/4 c -Water; boiling 3/4 c Sugar 2 tb Corn syrup 1 pn -Salt 2 ts Vanilla Pears: Combine water and sugar in saucepan; bring to a boil. Simmer uncovered 5 minutes. Meanwhile pare, halve and core pears. Place halves cut side down in syrup and simmer till tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add vanilla and cool in syrup about 1 hour. (Pears may be cooked ahead of time and held in refrigerator till ready to serve.) Sauce: Melt chocolate and butter in double boiler (or in microwave). Gradually stir in boiling water, s