Where do you want to go today? See the advertising industry has a lot to answer for, although, I have no idea what company that is for.
Anyway, today we are off to Pisa and Monte Rosso in the Cinque Terre - finally, Bee sighs!
So on a very cold and somewhat rainy morning, I shrugged on the pack and struggled along with my compatriots, through the wet streets of Florence to the bus. After about an hour and half on the bus, while everyone snoozed and Bob and I gossiped - sorry, should have warned you of the repetative themes - we arrived in Pisa, well, at the very least, a very large coach stop in Pisa.
For some reason I think I thought that Pisa is/was a much larger town/city but it really isn't. The monuments and massive walls seem to appear accidently as you round a suburban corner, with green hills in the background. Or perhaps I just wasn't walking in from the right direction. In any case, after wandering through the walls of Pisa, there it was, a massively crooked structure and another Duomo. At this point, John felt it necessary to disclose something that
will be of importance for the rest of our travels in Italy - he hates the word Duomo, particulary when our guide Simona says it. Well, that was a red rag to a bull and from ever after John, Bob, Ang, Sam, Nessa and myself will be referred to as Team Duomo. And, just so you know, a duomo is a cathedral.
After the requisite pics and a closer look at the tower itself, we have concluded, after a brief critical analysis of the history of the tower that we were told, that the reason it took so long to build (97 years apparently) was that the council workers had to stop and have a smoko every 15 minutes. There was also some Gallileo rumour, but Bob or John, you will have to remind me. I know he was rumoured to drop a lead ball from the tower in order to test his theory about gravity but I can't remember the rest. On further analysis, it also seemed that the church was a little crooked so it has been theorised that the head engineer has a chipped or at least very crooked metal rule.
Now, it musn't be
said that we were not suitably awed by these historical structures, but in order to contain our excitement, and appreciate them we needed to lighten the mood unless we become overcome at the moment.
After visiting Pisa and a spot of lunch, it was back on the bus to La Spezia where we would stay the night. After about another hour and half ride and then dropping our bags at the hotel, it was on to a train to Monte Rosso, the largest of the 5 villages of the Cinque Terre. Now, amongst all the plotting for my trip there has been a very large voice crowing about the Cinque Terre, that I simply must go, that it is pretty damn close to the most awesome place in the world. And, I have to say, I was very excited about finally going. So, there I was, on a train to Monte Rosso, about to tick a very large box on the "things to do in 2008" list.
The train itself was nothing spectacular, although the occassional glimpse of ocean after rocketing out of a tunnel in the mountain was quite dazzling. There was some puzzlement regarding the headrests
of the chairs (was it some crude neck massage device?), however that was put down to some anti-teenage mauling device (this joke just won't die, I tell you!).
Once in Monte Rosso, there was much strolling along the sea front. From the pics (they will be put up eventually people) you can see how glorious it is here, I only wish it waas a tad warmer, although at some stage I did actually take off my scarf. This truly is a magnificent place and I will confirm Bee's proclaimations, you simply have to go if you are ever in Italy. I definitely think I will try and get back here one day.
Stopping for cups of tea (yeah!) and then some postcards and my first gelato of the trip, it was great just to sit in the sunshine and watch the waves. Before too long it was back on the train, not before Ang perfected the toilet squat (don't ask!). Now, there really must be something uplifting and refreshing about the ocean air because on the way back to La Spezia there was something like insane hilarity from Bob and I. For some reason we were in hysterics,
convinced that 20 seconds of silence may actually kill us. Luckily for Ness she has the ability to tune right out, but poor John kept getting sucked in, only to try and fight his way back out of the madness. Fortunatly for him, we made it back to La Spezia before his brain exploded - or he strangled the pair of us.
Dinner that evening also proved memorable although not for the same outstanding reasons as Monte Rosso. We were blessed in that there was no red pasta in sight - yay for pesto - however our dessert was rather amusing. Before I may have mentioned that while we were served bread and olive oil at almost every meal, we were never given side/bread plates. This, as you can imagine was a etiquette nightmare for some of us, but we struggled on. Anyway, at the conclusion of dinner in La Spezia, the waitress appeared from around the corner with dishes of ...bananas. Now don't get me wrong, I have nothing against fruit, or bananas in particular, but when a plate of bananas appears on your table, on a plate even, some sort of confusion sinks in. After feasting on
the bananas (at least with the plate there was somewhere to put the peel) it was agreed that due to journal writing neglect, Team Duomo would meet in the lobby and update their journals together - reminding each other along the way of the adventures and let's face it, the crappy jokes that had left us in hysterics.
So, with pencils and the ready and memories on over drive we sat in comfy chairs, feeling very much like we were just hanging out in someone's lounge room - to the extent that Bob felt it neccesary to take off his shoes! This was until Ms Sami and Ang went to the bar and a few moments later silver platters with pots of tea and biscuits were carried in by the black and white clad waitress. Now that started something and before too long we were all merrily journal writing with our cups of tea. Well, except for Bob, who sauntered off the bar in his socks looking rather like a hobo and ordered a beer! After convicing Bob it wasn't a good idea to treat the lobby like his home and just strip off on his way to bed,
nor was it a good idea to just sleep on the couch, as well as updating the journals it was off to bed, sleeping pills at the ready after the previous night's insomnia!
General humour and statements of the day:
- Bob - Why do the doors (on trains) break? Do you think about that?
Dani - Every 5 minutes, with the rest of the important questions...
- If lettuce came in the shape of a cube, would peas be at risk of being replaced- John & Bob
- Something about a succubus - although I remember this, somethings just shouldn't be published!
Truth time...This was the only gelati I had in Italy...honestly, cross my heart.
Italy's Flag
Map of Italy