September 20, 2014
On this morn, we were up and had breakfast by 9:30 so we could meet our guide, Gabriello, for a walking tour of the city. And what a beautiful day for a walk it was....He was adorable. He spoke English but with a very thick Italian accent.
We saw museums, architectural delights, churches, piazzas and a whole lot of history at each place.
Every church was more gorgeoous than the last
street in Lucca with the famous Guinigi Tower at the end of it
"The city of Lucca in Tuscany, Italy, is famous for its medieval architecture and
intact city walls. Yet among all of its exquisite buildings one stands out.
The Torre Guinigi or Guinigi Tower in English towers over the city.
At
the top of the 44.5 meter high tower is something of a surprise – a garden
containing, of all things, oak trees.
High above the city this small
wood has provided a haven of peace for centuries"
Even with all the beautiful ancient architecture, I still found the simple sites the best...
my love for the doors of Italy continues...
and the chocolat shops...mmmmmmm
We also saw the site of the Roman amphitheatre of Luca
can you see the rounded building? this is a shot from the outside of it. Beautiful bricks, stone and architecture. In this day an age, it is now an open arena of shops and restaurants and homes. You walk thru arched openings into this...
the lower areas are shops and restaurants and cafes behind the umbrellas. Puccini even has a music shop here.
As we were strolling, we came upon an art gallery and look what came running out to me!!
I was missing my SophieJane so bad so this was just what the doctor ordered!!
It was also at the juncture that Lisa and I decided that we really needed a beverage other than wine. We needed hard liquor!! Hard to come by in this country. So when we saw a bar that had it on shelves, we jumped on it. I think I had 2 bourbon and cokes and she had some vodka and I think we spent about $40 dollars for it. Best 40 bucks we ever spent!! hahahahaha
Our tour lasted 3 hrs and by the time it was over, we were, of course, famished!! Hahahahaha.....what is it about Italy that makes one want to eat every few hours??!!!
So, Lisa and Jerri and Mary Gnome and I found the cutest lil outside tratattoria for lunch
and such a beautiful day to eat outside! Where we enjoyed...a cheese tray, tagliatelle with fresh mushroom sauce and pesto pasta!
YUM!
Remember, I talked about Lucca being the "walled town"?
This is the wall. On left is old Lucca...on right, across the fields is new Lucca
Our next plan of action was to rent bikes and ride around the wall surrounding the whole town. And oh, what fun!
On your mark, get set, GO!!
We all took off together and the path around the wall was absolutely stunning!
Drank water from the street fountains
Even had an ice cream man.....er, I mean a gelato man!!
After we made the entire circle around the city, Lisa and I rode off into the wild blue yonder...looking for shopping! And we just so happened to find it in the form of a fine Italian leather shop!!....where all of my daughter in laws and her kids got happy's!!
After we turned our bikes back in and were walking back to the B&B, we came across an outdoor market which was selling everything. Including a bakery food truck!
OMG. Just look at what we HAD to have...
She's gonna kill me but I couldn't resist! HAHAHAHA!
And what could make this perfect day even better? Buying a pair of Chanel sunglasses on the way home AND finding this on our doorstep when we got there!
Our B&B delivered clean clothes to us!!! We hadn't had anything washed, except in the bathroom sink, for TWO weeks.....and on this night, we had fresh clothes!!!!!
The rest of our group had plans for the opera this night but we were just too exhausted. Instead, we went next door and ate pizza and vino
....and went back to room. They even gave us more wine and we carried it home in a leftover plastic coke bottle!!
GOOD TIMES!!
