Livorno....well not quite.....but.....

Although the port is Livorno....we didnt stay there....we decided to rent a car and make our way to the Tuscany....well specific parts of it......we wanted to go a see Pisa, a mere 20km away, and then explore Lucca....off we went in the morning....gps was very helpful and brought us straight to the parking....how handy to have these little devices...of course im assuming that they are not confusing me...hahah....anyway...moving on....we entered though the gates of the old city wall...and what do we see.....the huge Baptisery, the Cathedral and of course....the famous leaning tower of Pisa...

Bapsitery
Cathedral

The baptistery (Battistero di San Giovanni)was begun in 1153 in a Romanesque style and was completed in the 1300s in the Gothic style....is the largest bapistery in Italy....the leaning tower's original height was 60m...it is now 56.67m (highest side) and 55.86m (lowest side)....it was closed between 1990 and 2001 because it was leaning too much, in fact it was leaning at 10 degree...it was then brought back to 5 degrees. The construction of the Pisa tower started in 1173 and was completed in 1399....it has 297 steps....one last fact....pisa got its name in 600BC from a Greek word meaning "marshy land"....hmmm...no wonder then that the foundation sunk....

Anyway....so after strolling the streets a little and looking at the sovenir shops....kim and i climbed the 297 steps to the top of the tower, they limit the number of people that go inside, so you have to buy a ticket for a certain time...when we were standing in line to buy the ticket, we saw on the screen above us how the allowed number of people for the 10:30 visit slowly started to decrease...but we made it...and man...i loved it...i have been wanting to go up there for sooooo long....my parents took me and my sister there often on holiday, well the tuscany, not pisa, and the one time we visited pisa and i finally had the guts to want to go up....and i was disappointed that it was closed for restoration...damn...so when i saw that it was open...i definitely wanted to climb it...and i must say it was a wierd feeling to walk up the winding staircase...you could actually feel how the tower leans while walking up the stairs, because of course the stairs are not straight...anyway...at the top one had a great view of Pisa....

The leaning tower of Pisa
Me and the tower
Kim having climbed the 297 stairs
Me at the top of the tower
View from the top
Another view from the top

After getting back down...next visit was the cathedral...and i must say...like most italian cathedrals...this one was also impressive....what i thought was unexpected was when they asked me to cover my shoulders...wow...didnt expect that....the duomo di pisa started to be built in 1064..here some pics

Entrance of the cathedral
Inside the cathedral

And then it was time to drive to Lucca where we would explore the old town...see some of its many towers..the most famous of them being the bell tower and the guinigi tower...and also see the piazzo amfiteatro as well as the napoleon piazza....and not to forget...have some lunch..and yes...of course i had done some research and lucca is most famous for soup of faro (grain similar to barley), different styles of rabbit but the most famous of them all is the Tortelli Lucchese....home-made egg pasta stuffed with seasonal meat and served with a rich tomato and beef ragu...first up lunch...but not before stopping for some truffels....so many choices...what to choose.....hmmm...tartuffo classico and tarftuffo nero with hazelnuts....and my verdict....the second one was better....

Choc shop

Lunch...we ate at a little restaurant at the amfiteatro and kim and i shared the Tortelli Lucchese and a mozzarella and proscuitto....yes...i decided to have an Aperol spritz with my meal...and the food was simple...but very delicous....yummie..and it allowed space for ice cream

Piazza Anifiteatro
Tortelli Lucchese and mozzarella with proscuitto

Kim chose the first ice cream place..and it was terrible..but then again...i did tell him that this ice cream doesnt look home-made...but never mind...he realised it after buying it...and then 20m further i bought ice cream pistaccio and amarena...and man..it was sooo damn good...wow....and yes...i did share with kim.....it was so so good...yummie....

Deciding which ice cream at Ratatouille

And guess what....after seeing quite a few towers....we decided to climb the 213 steps up the guinigi tower, so cool...right at the top it had trees...and apparently they are natural...they just grew.....they were not planted up there....that is a total mystery to me......but view...spectacular...and well worth going up there....climbing all the stairs...damn...i think we climbed enough stairs today....

San Michele tower
Torre del ora
guinigi tower
View from the top
One of the many roof tops
Me climbing down the stairs
And last but not least....we visited the village from where Pinocchio is from....Collodi....we just wanted to see...hopped out..bought some souvenirs, saw the tallest pinocchio in the world....had a refreshment and then we returned to the ship....a full day out...a full day well spent....
World's tallest Pincchio

Now we are busy sailing out...on our way to Toulon....bye-bye Italy....but only for now...hope to see you soon.....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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