Postcards from a McTraveler: 191. Lucca and Pisa

Where: Pisa and Lucca, Italy
When: May 19-21, 2015
With: Mom, Bobby & Ashley

After our beachy, hilly days in Cinqueterre, it was time to head inland to our most rural and non-touristy stop on the trip: the walled city of Lucca. However, by train, we had to make a stop in one of Italy's most well-known tourist spots: the city of Pisa. It was a day of opposites.

Since we went to Pisa first, let's talk towers. Coming into Pisa, my expectations were low. Most said it was an overly touristy city with panhandlers and peddlers galore. However, I'd also heard that outside the main tourist attractions, Pisa was pleasantly untouristy. Being in the midst of a long day of train travel, we were not very adventuresome though. So we decided to just leave our bags at the train station, cab to the tower, snap a photo, and get back.

Based on our cab ride, I would agree the city of Pisa probably does need to be given a chance. It appeared clean and bright, with rolling hills in the distance and the same River Arno from Florence running through it. And while our only experience with the people was our very friendly cab driver, it was a positive one.

We were let off by our cab just outside the massive walls that surround the "Field of Miracles", as the complex is called where the Leaning Tower sits. In addition to the tower, it contains the cathedral, a baptistry, and a cemetery. They all sit on impeccably maintained green grass, enclosed by a wall. I have to say, I was actually wildly impressed and blown away by the sight.

Despite the fact that Pisa is now really only known for its Leaning Tower, it was once a pretty powerful city-state, up there with the likes of Florence and Venice. Back in the day, the sea was about 10km further inland than it is now, making Pisa a wealthy port city. To demonstrate its wealth, the city decided to build a great cathedral with all the fixin's (bell tower, baptistry, etc.) in the 11th century. Unfortunately, the power of Pisa declined in the 13th century, but at least they have these great buildings to remember their wealth by (and bring in the tourists).

I'd love to tell you more about the other buildings, but like I said, we were there to snap "the photo". So unfortunately, I've only got details on the Tower itself below.

So the Tower. Here it is peeking out from behind the Cathedral. And look at that lean. It's original purpose was the bell tower for the church. It's tilt began right from the start due to an uneven and unstable foundation. It is all fixed up now and shouldn't lean any further than it already does, but man, the fact it stayed standing all these 900 years is impressive.

So now for the photos. On the west side of the lawn, where we entered, it was kind of hard to get that iconic photo with the tower. There were just so many people around, it kind of ruined the shots. But we still had fun trying anyway.

We walked around the entire base of the tower. I was surprised how immaculately clean it looked. It was hard to see in the direct sun it was so blindingly white. But on the back side, we could appreciate the beautiful arches and pillars that must have taken so much time and effort to create.

At the base, it is even more impressive how much it looks like this tower is just sinking into the ground.

Around on the east side of the "Field", it was much quieter with far less people. This afforded us the true money shots.

I like to call this "Ashley Kong".

From this end, it felt peaceful to just lie in the grass and enjoy the view. I did not expect that kind of calm based on what I'd expected of Pisa. So that was a lovely surprise.

After an hour or so, it was time to head back to the station to catch our train to Lucca. Luckily this was a very frequent local train, so no reservations required. The train was waiting when we arrived at the station, and a short ride later, we were outside the imposing walls of Lucca.

Lucca has been around since the BC times when it was founded by the Etruscans (the original people of the Italian peninsula). As of 180BC, it became a Roman colony, and gained all the lovely architectural bits that go with that: an amphitheater, well marked streets, and a protective wall encircling the city. To this day, the main "site" of Lucca is that wall, which has been reinforced and built up over the years. Now, the top of the wall is a park with a bike path fully encircling the entire city.

Given the entire city takes 20 minutes to walk through end to end, cars are not really a thing here. So off the train, we had a rather confusing hike to get to our hotel. Our hotel ended up being an apartment within the 2,000-year-old walls of the Roman amphitheater. If the three flights of stairs we had to climb to get there wouldn't bother you, it was a fantastic place to stay. The views into the old amphitheater (now a piazza) were stunning.

We enjoyed the view from our apartment on the roofs below.

After eating dinner, we took a wander around the city. Surprisingly, the city boards up pretty quickly at night. Since the city is less touristy, the streets weren't filled and there was a pleasant quiet in the air.

The next morning, we were ready for a day of serious biking. Throughout the streets of Lucca, bikes completely dominate and everyone rides one. Even ladies in their finest couture outfits, hair perfectly done wearing beautiful high heels, rode around the streets.

So we rented our bikes and headed off around the city. The pathway was smooth and while there were lots of locals and tourists riding along, it was never crowded. Just a perfectly pleasant bike ride.

As we rode along, we got to see the beauty of the city from above. We passed beautiful Italian villas, Tuscan mountains, Roman ruins, and street life below.

Since it was still a celebration of mom's birthday, we stopped to get an array of delicious snacks from a local shop for a picnic on the walls. Cheese, olives, artichokes, paninis, and most importantly, wine, made up our spread.

And what better way to work off lunch than another loop around on the bike?

Our day in Lucca was simple, but necessary in the fast-paced trip we had. We stopped for espresso, we drank wine, we strolled the streets and enjoyed la dolce vita.

The next morning, we had to say goodbye to the simplicity of Lucca. On a cloudy, rainy morning, these walls seem to be saying "....and stay out!", but we see through your trickery. This city was lovely.