Villa Volpi Lucca

... market (without the sampling) with lots of lovery deli's, cafe's and patisseries. Ofcourse we had to buy the local pastry called a buccellato which is kind of a cross between a biscuit and a fruit loaf... yummy with the morning coffee.<br><br>Before too long Kim pointed out her favorite bar from last time and pull me in to join her in a wine or 3. The tapas were as good as Kim had ...

... one was also closed, but there were no hours on the doors. Tara had said that she wanted to go bike riding but this time on her own bike which she handled quite well and we rode twice around the wall then walked back to the playground which the girls had seen everytime we rode around the town. On the way home we decided to look for a ...

We had 3 different trains to catch to get to Cinque Terre. We had to change at Viareggio and La Spezia. Cinque Terre means five lands and which is actually five villages which are connected by train and by hiking tracks. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site and a national park which charges to use the lower hiking path and apparently closes it if it gets too busy. Mountains covered with terraced vineyards and olive groves meet the Mediteranean Sea. Think ...

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>

... also talked everyone into climbing the Clock Tower as we still had tickets for it from the day it rained. It was a pretty hard climb and a bit smelly from pigeon poo. The view was worth it though. We also had a coffee at a bar which was also a bit of a delicatessen and I found Amedi chocolate which is made in Tuscany and is supposed to be very nice.<br><br>We went home for a rest as we were heading out later for ...

... 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 ...

... saying.<br> Pisa, that town of towers and universities, was my entry point into fabled Italy; its airport reminded me of the dusty Orlando airfield circa 1978, but it&#8217;s where a lot of people fly into when they&#8217;re entering Tuscany. My people live outside of Lucca, a small city situated a fifth of the way from Pisa to Florence. Here&#8217;s a little map; if it&#8217;s legible enough, Lucca is in a box ...

... the time). In short, it was one of the most uplifting and enjoyable experiences that I've had for a long, long time. After several encores, the crowd quietly dispersed almost with that sensation you see in people when they return from the altar rail having taken communion. We somehow all managed to locate each other and returned once more to the scene of the previous evening's pizza and vino, and repeated the process until we were once again thrown out.

... could! Originally I was only going to do a day trip on my way to Milan, but that changed to a night, then two, with three full days to explore! The villages are connected by a walking track that you can walk in around 4 hours, which I did on Monday ...

... we left, we went to a small wine bar where they were playing the olympics. Very very sad. We have no tv or way to watch the olympics here yet they are only a few hours train ride away. I regret now not getting tickets, but I think I'm going to go to one of the ticket stores tomorrow and try to find a ticket with a few of the other girls. I'm crossing my fingers!!! I'm getting sick...again. I'm going back to the flat to watch a movie after this though and ...