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

Riviera Day 10: Olbia

Anyone ever hear of Olbia? Us neither and apparently there's good reason for that. I couldn't find anything of interest to do here when researching this trip so we scheduled this to be our "sea day", a day relaxing on the ship: reading, sunning, and of course, eating. Wonderful!

Tomorrow: Livorno and Tuscany

Riviera Day 9: Amalfi

Coming back to Amalfi was the day I was looking forward to most on this cruise. I visited here back in 1997 and thought then that it was one of the most gorgeous places I'd seen and I hoped it would still be the same for my Mom.

We dropped anchor around 7am but we weren't cleared to go ashore until just after 8am. We were tantalized by the lovely views not only during breakfast, but even from our cabin!

Today we had 3 villages to see: Positano, Amalfi, and Ravello. First up: a 30-minute ferry ride along the coast to Positano. Arguably one of the best ways to view this area, from the sea, it offered up amazing views of all the brightly colored homes & hotels that dot this coast, as well as ancient stone towers and fortifications reminiscent of medieval times.

Positano is spectacular. A small bit of shore crowded by a tiny dock and a gazillion beach chairs, the town snakes up the hill behind, filled with fancy shops and eateries. We worked our way up and out of town, then ran (!) to catch the local bus back to Amalfi.

The coast road here is death-defying. I think our driver had one hand on the horn and another praying to Jesus the whole time he tackled the challenging drive. The cliff can't really support a dual-lane road so in many places it just...isn't. It's serpentine-y and narrow, with tunnels and blind curves round every other corner. Cars have to back up to let others pass, side mirrors get folded in, and I'm sure insurance claims are the highest in the country. Luckily we were so taken with the views were we didn't have time to get scared!

Back in Amalfi we found a nice cafe on the main square for a restorative pastry and drink, and we sat and watched the people go by for a good long time. The church next door had a wedding going on so the exiting guest's outfit choices provided lots of gossip fodder!

Then we took another local bus up another stomach-testing curvy and steep road to Ravello. Situated high above the water, it offered fantastic views down the Amalfi coastline.  We didn't have a lot of time left for sightseeing so we just wandered around the main square for a bit, before taking the hair-raising ride back down.

We were quite done with people 'n crowds 'n lines 'n noise once we returned to the ship so we tucked into our cabin, poured ourselves a cocktail to enjoy on our balcony, and ordered Room Service to spend a nice quiet evening in with Casablanca on TV.

Tomorrow: Olbia, Sardinia