Hola Everyone! I am back in Spain. Valenica to be exact. Robin and I just had a siesta on the beach for an hour and we are over heated. We came to an internet place to get some cold air, and relax a bit. Since we are here, I figured I would write about our day in Lucca and Pisa.
On Friday we left Florence bright and early and took an hour train to a small town called Lucca. It´s part of Tuscany, and it is a small town within a wall. The wall around the town is 4 kilometers, which is like two and a half miles. We chose this town because we heard good things about it, and we heard it was fun to ride bikes. Neither Robin nor I have rode a bicycle in the past ten years, but we thought it couldn´t be too hard to start again. We found a little bicycle shop right near the train station, and the owner was a cute little old Italian man. He let us keep our huge backpacks in the back room, and we got to pick what color bicycle we wanted! I got purple and Robin had red. We had to take a few minutes to get used to riding a bicycle again, but once we got the hang of it, we were able to cruise all around! The only difficult part was that we had to ride in the street, with all the cars, and crazy drivers. At first it was intimidating to be riding where they drove. We walked our bike´s to a spot that was less crowded. However, as the day continued we got more comfortable on our bikes, and were able to ride in the street like pros.
We started our bike ride by finding a place to get lunch. We found a cute little cafe in the middle of a square and had panini´s. They were good. The panini´s were different than the ones we have in America. The cheese wasn´t melted completely, and the bread wasn´t as toasted. This way was better because I was able to taste the mozzerella much better.
After we ate, we took our bikes to the top of the wall. There are no cars up there, and you can see down onto the city, as well as outside the city. Robin and I had so much just riding around! I forgot how exciting bicycles can be, and I will totally be buying one when I return home. En route around the wall, we pulled off and stopped into a large square. It had some restaurants and shops. The shops were really pretty. They had a lot of ceramic things, and I was tempted to buy everything. However I am traveling with a huge backpack. Guess I will just have to go back and do some shopping.
After riding around for a bit, we returned the bicycles and caught a train to Pisa. It was not a long ride, and we had about an hour and half to see the tower and get back to the train station to go to Roma. Let me tell you, we never hauled ass like that before. We basically had to go all the way to the other side of Pisa to see the tower. I learned a few things. 1. Who knew that the Leaning Tower of Pisa is actually a bell tower? We didn´t actually know what it was used for until we saw it next to a church. 2. It is REALLY hard to get pictures of you holding up the tower. There are just so many people around walking. When you think it´s clear to snap a picture, someone walks in front of you or right behind you, ruining the picture. It is also really hard to find the perfect spot to take the picture where it looks natural. Robin and I tried to get a few pictures holding up the tower, but it didn´t come out perfectly. We didn´t mind though. We were more interested in wanting to know the history of the tower.
Walking back to the train station, we wanted to stop into souvenier shops, but couldn´t find any. I was upset that it was hard to find souvenier shops, but I was also impressed that Pisa is able to keep part of their city tourist free. Next time I go back to Italy, I would love to spend some more time exploring Pisa. I love looking at all of the old buildings. It is so weird to think that a few hundred years ago those buildings were brand new, and were being used on a daily basis for anything and everything.
Stay tuned to hear about our last few days in Italy....Roma!!
Sammy xoxo
After riding around for a bit, we returned the bicycles and caught a train to Pisa. It was not a long ride, and we had about an hour and half to see the tower and get back to the train station to go to Roma. Let me tell you, we never hauled ass like that before. We basically had to go all the way to the other side of Pisa to see the tower. I learned a few things. 1. Who knew that the Leaning Tower of Pisa is actually a bell tower? We didn´t actually know what it was used for until we saw it next to a church. 2. It is REALLY hard to get pictures of you holding up the tower. There are just so many people around walking. When you think it´s clear to snap a picture, someone walks in front of you or right behind you, ruining the picture. It is also really hard to find the perfect spot to take the picture where it looks natural. Robin and I tried to get a few pictures holding up the tower, but it didn´t come out perfectly. We didn´t mind though. We were more interested in wanting to know the history of the tower.
Walking back to the train station, we wanted to stop into souvenier shops, but couldn´t find any. I was upset that it was hard to find souvenier shops, but I was also impressed that Pisa is able to keep part of their city tourist free. Next time I go back to Italy, I would love to spend some more time exploring Pisa. I love looking at all of the old buildings. It is so weird to think that a few hundred years ago those buildings were brand new, and were being used on a daily basis for anything and everything.
Stay tuned to hear about our last few days in Italy....Roma!!
Sammy xoxo
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