Grand Hotel Palazzo Livorno

... for our walk through the walled village. There is a 14th century fort with make up part of the walls. Today it is used as a prison - your not supposed to take photos of it, but I snapped a couple off before I knew... luckily I was not spotted by the local polizi. The town was cute for sure but I'm not sure it deservered all the accolades given to it by other travellers we had met in Lucca. Having said that we did take more photos than usual.

... on internet and then back to the bar for more wine and tapas.<br><br>Sun 15 <br>Did some chores... yes we have some, we are not totaly void of resposibility. Went to the supermarket to stock up on food and went to an Aire d'service to empty Theo (our Thescott cassette toilet). Enough of that and we were back in the walls checking out the Antiques Market and eating Gelati... YUM!!<br>

Just realized those not on facebook haven't seen pictures from Pisa and Florence. No long recap of Anthony and I's weekend in Tuscany, for obvious reasons. Also note that "Anthony and Alison's Great Adventure" was like taking a knife.<br><br>Love you guys! :)<br>

I have resolved to try and keep this blog more up-to-date.<br>So much has happened since late July that i wont even start writing it down, but to summarise our drive as follows:<br>Arcachon<br>Bordeaux<br>Flo rac (Ardeche)<br>Montpellier where the family ...

... is the third oldest structure in Pisa's Piazza del Duomo (Cathedral Square) after the Duomo (cathedral) and the Baptistery of Giovanni. <br><br>Although intended to stand vertically, the tower began leaning to the southeast soon after the onset of construction in 1173 due to a poorly laid foundation and loose substrate that has allowed the foundation to shift direction. The tower presently leans to the southwest.<br><br>Our ...

... a footing. Horses apparently regularly get hurt as do drivers who get thrown off by the treacherous track and the horses are trained to continue running as the winner is the horse (with or without rider) who finishes first.<br><br>We had a short while to wander around then back to the bus for our trip to a winery for lunch and tasting of their wines (and the obligatory sales pitch). By now, with the bathroom break and rain, we were at least an hour ...

... a stroll through the village of Marta, and by god there was a swan in the lake. Better and better.<br> <br>Back to the bus and on to the medieval village of Tuscania where we looked over the stone walls to the most beautiful view of 2 9th century basilicas in a green valley. I told John that if her ever wanted to rent a Tuscan villa, this is the place. We stayed here a while just enjoying the afternoon. What a lovely day!<br><br>Tomorrow on to Sicily

We are in Livorno again today, the port city for Pisa and Florence. Once again my co-workers are out on tours and I am working for them. I did leave the ship around four and have off until 8 PM, but it is so hot and I am exhausted from all the hours I've worked in the last few days. I am quite worn out. It is sad when I feel obligated ...

... right and we made it there shortly. Once I left their company I spotted a family from the ship that had 7 year old twins in kids club and approached them to ask which spot the shuttle would pick up at and the girls hugged me but the dad didn't recognize me in street clothes. I quickly explained who I was and then he relaxed and told me where to catch the shuttle. I jumped in when the next one arrived, made it back to the ship by 1:45 and quickly changed clothes and ...

... stop for lunch until about 2:00 (which seems to be normal around here) and we found a cute little restaurant with some tables outside (the weather was perfect). I have been waiting a long time to try some real Italian cuisine and this restaurant definitely served us well. I ordered some bruscetta and a vegetable pizza...AMAZING! All my friends warned me about how good the food would be, and they did not lie. It doesn't get much better than this. Since ...