Rome

Sheila here, Alipoo is worn out dragging me from country to country so I am leaping into the breach and reprising our last 3 days in Rome.  

We stayed at the Hotel Cesari, a 1787 building around the corner from the Pantheon and close to the Trevi fountain.  Not as luxurious as the Ship but centrally located in Rome. Allison has been to Roma many times so had no difficulty finding all the sites.  We walked to them all!  The Pantheon was very different than I imagined, I had no idea there was whole in the ceiling!  the Trevi fountain, very crowded, the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. 

We went to the Vatican Museum and St. Peter's - Allison knew beforehand which pictures she wanted to view again. The Sistine chapel was awesome.  

Saint Peter's was huge but rather impersonal, I much preferred the gothic Santa Maria Sopra Minerva, my new favorite church.

We climbed the Spanish Steps on the way to the Villa Borghese,  and walked through the gardens.  We walked around Rome at night and ate at small little places.  After the ship it was difficult to justify eating the same type of meals, very expensive!

A wonderful trip but not for the faint hearted unless you have an Allison to guide you, or guide me at least. She also took 1160 photos too. So thank you  Alipoo! If she won't take me again I had better be nice to Michael!! 

Thanks to all of you who have followed our journeys.

Sheila

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Riviera Day 12: Pisa & Lucca

Ha ha! Can't resist a classic Tower photo op!

Today was sightseeing by public transportation. We trekked out of the huge port and right into the heart of Livorno where we caught a bus for the train station. The bus pulled up just as I was buying the tickets at the Tabacchi, which set the example for the rest of the day...running for transport! 

The train to Pisa was a quick 25 minute ride, and Mom's first commuter trip! Here she is looking proud of herself...

Pisa is actually quite an attractive city. We chose to walk the 25 minutes to the "Field of Miracles" to get a taste of the town and we were pleasantly surprised at how pleasant it was.

Then you turn the corner and glimpse the Leaning Tower of Pisa and think "oh my, it really does lean!"

The square that holds the tower also has the amazing Duomo (Mom's new favorite church) with its interior of black & white 'Pisan-style' architecture, masterwork 14th C Pisano pulpit and stunning mosaic apse.

As well as the Baptistry and the Campo Santo (monumental cemetery).

Then we went to take a bus back to the train station and just as we reached the bus stop it magically appeared - how lucky was that?  Not having a chance to graze in Pisa I guiltily munched a burger at the station's McDonald's (just to keep up my strength), and we hopped aboard the waiting train for Lucca.

Lucca is another charming small town that is completely surrounded by walls, but this time gigantic earthen walls. The present set were apparently designed by Leonardo da Vinci; they never actually had to repel any attackers and ended up being preserved pretty much intact and now serve as wonderful place to stroll or bicycle around the town.

The town had the prerequisite beautiful churches, 2 remaining medieval towers, and an old roman amphitheater which now is a large cobblestone oval surrounded by 12-16thC buildings. All very pretty and refreshingly not packed with tourists.

We strolled thru town, and along the walls. We lounged at a cafe and watched the world go by, until...crap! The train! We ran back to the station and right aboard our train to Pisa. Luckily I pre-bought our tickets else we'd have had a good hours wait till the next train. Once at Pisa I couldn't see the expected train to Livorno so I consulted the Info Desk. Something was said about a cancellation but there was a delayed train leaving right now, on track 12 of course. Mom and I OJ'd it thru the station and managed to catch that train too. And the last piece of transportation luck was that our bus back to central Livorno was patiently waiting outside the front doors for us. I must say, the stress of it all exhausted me for the rest of the day!

Back on board by 5:15pm the action didn't stop. It was our last night of the cruise so we (meaning I) had laundry to do, bags to pack, accounts to settle, e-reader to charge (?!?), Sales to check, bodies to weigh. We straggled down to the Main Dining Room at 8pm for dinner! That's almost bedtime in my book. A last 4-course meal to enjoy as the lights of Livorno faded in our wake, we couldn't resist one last Jacques Pepin Signature steak!

Next Trip: Rome

Day 11: Livorno & Tuscany

We are docked in Livorno for 2 nights so there are no restrictions as to how long we stay out and play today. Not that we have any real concrete plan.... We have a car rented, delivery is dockside, and away we'll go.

Okay, just kidding. Of course I have a semblance of a plan: we'll drive through Tuscany, stopping in San Gimignano and Volterra, then...?

The pick up of the car was a snap, the Hertz guys set up a little table outside the ship, I signed a few papers, they gave me a map and a GPS and away we went! First off San G. It's a quaint hilltop town famous for the remaining medieval towers that were once used by their owners as refuge during times of siege. Bad men come, up the ladders they go. Livestock first floor, cooking next, up to living, sleeping, etc. Some towers are just a few meters square and several stories high. Also on the tourist's radar: the interior of the cathedral is covered in amazing frescoes a la "Tea With Mussolini" but no pics allowed, I'm afraid.

A little respite was called for next so we found a scenic lay by to eat the picnic we smuggled off the ship then set off to drive  over hill and dale to Volterra.

Volterra is another hidden gem of a hilltop town. An amazing ancient fortress anchors one end (now a state prison!) and the cathedral and town hall the other. Lots of shopping and pedestrian streets in between.

And lastly, we turned back east again to zip over to the tiny town on Monteriggioni. I only came across the name the day before on a forum while looking online for which towns to see and as we had time... 

It turned out to be the cutest little town ever. Slightly egg-shaped and only a few hundred meters across, it is perfectly surrounded by tall stone walls with evenly spaced towers. One square and 2-3 streets - that was it! A couple gelaterias, a bar, some nice artsy stores and a hotel. Not overly touristy, lots of history, and great views = we like.

It ended up being a lot of driving but hey, curvy mountain roads in a peppy manual car, what could be more fun? A great day overall.

Tomorrow: Pisa & Lucca