Cinque Terre to Pisa

---

Pisa
This is my second time writing about Pisa, as my first entry deleted, and now I'm a little frustrated so this will probably be the condensed version. 
I ended the last entry with the first night in Cinque Terre, and didn't get a chance to talk at all about our morning.  I only stayed for a short while, but the views were amazing, exactly like I had imagined, and the single reason I spent an entire day trying to get there.  I wish I had been able to go to the northern cities and stay for the day, but I'm just grateful that I wasn't there a day before and didn't get caught in the disaster. After breakfast and taking a short look around town, I parted ways with my new friends and headed to the train station to figure out where I was going next.
After an uneventful ride back to La Spezia, I arrived to a ridiculously long line of people waiting to get tickets.  Because of the huge storm, all Internet was out, and therefor, tickets had to be sold manually instead of using the self-service ticket stations.  And credit cards weren't able to be processed, so cash only.  That was apparently a big issue for a lot of people, because there were a few girls crying and a lot of yelling going on.  After waiting in a line that moved slower than the continental drift, I was a little frustrated and wanted an alternative to spending the entire day waiting to get on a train.  I talked to an English man who turned out to be making his homestead only 45 minutes from there.  He let me in on a little secret that apparently no one else knew about-- the tobacco shop sells tickets for all inter-city stops.  Perfect. I went there (in the same building, only steps away) and got my ticket in less than five minutes.  Phew!  I went back to thank the man, and an elderly couple overheard that I had gotten a ticket and asked about it.  I showed them the way and purchased the tickets for them.  Although they had been in Italy for a month, they didn't pick up much of the language and I apparently have done a little better with it.  They thanked me over and over for the help.  I told them I was just passing on the courtesy, and we sat down to wait for our train to Pisa (I chose it because it was the closest and I didn't feel like traveling much).  We got to talking, and they told me about their horrifying experience in Vernazza (the town in Cinque Terre with the mudslide and flooding).  They talked about how they almost drowned in their apartment, and they had to get rescued from the bedroom window.  They lost all their belongings, but save a few bruises and scrapes, they were okay.  Recollecting the day, they were visibly shaken.  The look of horror in the woman's eyes sent shivers down my spine.  As she (Phillis) kept on with the story, my eyes welled up with tears.  It was amazing how she spoke.... She was never angry or upset. She just kept speaking about how wonderful all of the locals were to them.  Giving them warm dry clothes of their own, carrying her down the hill to a boat that would take them to the next town.  The owner of the apartment they were renting even tried not to let them pay for their last week's stay, although she will be out of any source of income due to the flood ravaging her apartment, car, and garden from which she sold her produce at the local market.  The whole town was in shambles, and everyone was so eager to help all the tourists get to safety.  It says a lot about a people, in my opinion.  
As soon as I got to Pisa I wanted to get out and walk around.  I needed a good tourist walk to decompress.  I did the standard tourist walk to the leaning tower and such.  I wasn't super impressed with the city, but I think if it was my first stop I would have been amazed.  After a little shopping and a good shower, I met up with the couple from the train (Phyllis and Don) and we had dinner together.  They insisted on taking me out as a thank you for helping them.  I felt a little weird about accepting that because I didn't really do anything, but I guess if I was in their shoes, any little positive thing would make me very grateful.  So I happily accepted, and met them in their hotel suite for a bottle of wine before dinner.  They were staying in the same hotel, except I was in the lowly vagabond traveler room, and they had a suite at the top level with a huge patio overlooking the river in Pisa.  I should have taken pictures.  
We went to a very nice restaurant where we shared a carafe of wine, a pizza, and a couple different kinds of gnocchi. They were all amazing.  After a couple hours of endless conversation, we headed back to the hotel. During the entirety of dinner, I found myself wishing I had that kind of relationship with my grandparents.  I told them stories about my life, growing up, working, family, etc... And just their expressions made me feel warm and understood.
We said our goodbyes and exchanged email addresses.  They made me promise to email them when I got home so they knew I finished my travels safely and with excitement. I never thought I would be hanging out with elderly people on this trip, let alone enjoying it immensely! Phyllis even gave me her phone card so I could call home before i left, because she thought my sister and brother would like to hear my voice. 😊 

---