This morning, I woke up completely out of sorts thanks to a dream I had last night. It just goes to show that you can travel several thousand miles from home and still have all the angst and annoyances that you had in the States. Ain't life grand? What I'd like to do is call someone and tell them to stay out of my dreams, but unfortunately there is no controlling the subconscious. Therefore, I decided to make the best of things and go off on my tour of Tuscany.
The tour left via mini-bus from Florence's train station. On board were 16 tourists plus our fantastic tour guide (and my new Italian friend), Antonella. Of the 16 tourist: 8 spoke Italian, 7 spoke Spanish, and 1 spoke English (c'est moi). I will say that the 8 Italian-speaking tourists were rude, crude, and boorish. Turns out, they were Sicilian. Need I say more? One of the Spanish speaking tourists, was a lovely gal from Mexico, Claudia, who is currently living in Barcelona, studying. Yes, I made a new friend who speaks better English than my horrible Spanish.
The tour started in Siena, which was a bonus. I thought it was going to start in Pisa, but thank goodness, no. Siena is medieval city of 55,000 people which is known for its cuisine and the Palio, a horse race held twice a year. In July and August, 50,000 people fill the main city square of Siena, where 17 of the city's neighborhoods vie for a trophy by running a horse in the Palio. This three minute race is the highlight of the city and people start to fill the square by 8:00am for a race that takes place at 7:00pm. It sort of reminds me of Times Square on New Year's. Today, the main square (Piazza del Campo) was the location of an incredible market. After meeting up with the local tour guide, we walked up a few streets to the top of the hill in order to tour the Cathedral (Santa Maria Assunta). There are a few items of note within this church: a sculpture of John the Baptist by Donatello, four sculptures by Michelangelo, a stunning marble mosaic floor, and the near perfect frescoes in the library which have never been restored but look brand new. Amazing artwork in this cathedral.
After leaving Siena, it was time for a 'traditional Tuscan lunch'. We made our way to just outside San Gimignano (which I'll talk about in a minute) to a restaurant/vineyard where we had lunch. It consisted of two types of bruschetta and salami for an appetizer, pasta (penne) with tomato sauce for the main meal, and panna cotta for dessert. Before heading off to our next stop (San Gimignano), I snapped a few photos of the surrounding Tuscan scenery. So beautiful.
Then we were off to San Gimignano, which is a small walled medieval town and is the jewel in the crown of Tuscany. With a population of only 7,000, this town just oozes history. Famous for its towers, the town once had 72 of them due to rivalries amongst two families who kept competing for the most towers and the tallest of them. Eventually many of the towers were destroyed over the years, but there are still 17 intact towers. It's a beautiful oasis and I just loved this town. Even better were the photos that I took of Tuscany. I'm certain they do not due it justice and you'll have to take my word that Tuscany is stunningly gorgeous.
After leaving San Gimignano, we traveled for 90 minutes to Pisa. Along the way we drove through Tuscany and what I saw was: emerald green rolling hills, dotted with vineyards and olive trees, with the occasional villa or village. We also drove by Andrea Bocelli's birthplace, Lajatico, Teatro del Silenzio, an open air amphitheatre located in Bocelli's hometown and dedicated to him, and the Bocelli family winery. Pretty awesome. I can see why people say they are going to run away and live in a villa in Tuscany. Sign me up for that!! Seriously, I cannot stress this enough: my photos of the countryside do not convey the beauty of this area.
We finally ended up in Pisa. Now, I've been to Pisa before and seeing the Leaning Tower of Pisa is always a worthwhile visit. We arrived fairly late in the day (4:30), so it was starting to get dark. The bizarre thing about Pisa's Cathedral Square, which has the Tower, the Cathedral, the Baptistery, and the Cemetery, is that they don't have any of the four buildings lighted for evening viewing. I can't imagine why, but it's bizarre. As you may or may not know, the Tower is tilted unintentionally to one side due to the inadequate foundation on ground too soft. The Tower leans at an angle of 3.99 degrees which is an improvement from when it was 5.5 degrees. Because of how late in the day we arrived, we couldn't actually get into any of the sites. It was just a photo opportunity. Oh well.
We boarded the mini-bus at 5:30 to make our way back to Florence, arriving around 7:00pm. I supposed to have dinner with friends of a friend, but by the time I got back to Florence, I was fried (Sorry, Steve!). I find I'm getting more and more tired as this trip goes on. I suppose that's to be expected.
Check out all of my Tuscany photos from Day 47 on my GToE photo site. Tomorrow, Rome!
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| Me in front of the Tower. |
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