Friday, August 8, 2014

Pisa



Maddie holding the tower.
Damon leaning on the tower.
Elena towering over the tower.

The only reason to travel to Pisa is to see the leaning tower.  There is nothing appealing to the town.  No reason to wander, no museums to explore, not even any charming neighborhoods to enjoy.
I think this was the main thing Elena wanted to go to Italy to see.  She talked about it and anticipated seeing the tower.  
The architecture of the tower is unique.  I didn't see anything else like it during our travels.  The fact that it is leaning only makes for a great excuse to act silly.  We took plenty of time to create funny photos, laugh and just have fun. 


I climbed to the top of the tower with Damon and Elena.  Round and round and round.  At the top I clung to the fence afraid I would slip to my death.  I think it may have been the leaning feeling, but I was sure we were all going to fall off.


Lucca


Sometimes it's good to get off the well beaten path and relax in the country a bit.  Lucca was that town for our family.  Located between Florence and Pisa, Lucca was the perfect stop-off.  A wall designed by Leonardo De Vinci  surrounds the old city.  Streets and alleys twist and turn leading to small plazas.  Restaurants serving pizza or pasta are tucked into little niches along the way.  We relaxed and wandered around.  We even rented tandem bikes and rode on top of the wall.


Tower with trees growing out the top.