November 15 – December 4, 2008

Saturday, November 15 – Flight to Pisa

Jensen and I took the train from Bedford to Gatwick and caught an easyJet flight to Pisa. My brother, Doug picked us up at the airport for the hour’s drive to Bagna di Lucca, a small village just north of Lucca. It was almost dark when we arrived, up the winding, often one-lane road to the villa. Doug’s wife, Lily, and her sister, Nancy, had a sumptuous spaghetti dinner waiting for us.

The villa was lovely – big, sturdy, stone structure hugging the side of the hill. If it were summer, the swimming pool would be have been inviting; but, as it was, we only ventured out in the “heat” of the day when the sun was at its zenith, to sit on the terrace, read our books.

The next few days were spent enjoying the Tuscan life of leisure. We went shopping for groceries in the fairly well stocked store, trying to decipher Italian labels – the ginger scones were fine, even though I doubt that was baking powder I used! Started the jigsaw puzzle, played Balderdash, and had wonderful home cooked food! Jensen went hiking in the high hills high above Bagna di Lucca, and fortunately got a ride back down to the villa from the forest ranger!

We spent one rather overcast day in Lucca, exploring the city, churches, and ended up having a lovely, long buffet lunch. Most of the stores close for several hours mid-day, so you have to carefully plan any shopping trips.

Wednesday – Friday: Cinque Terre and Genoa

Doug, Lily, and Nancy dropped Jensen and me in Lucca as they headed off for Florence. Jensen and I picked up a rental car and made our way to the western coast of Italy. Our destination was Cinque Terra, five small remote villages clinging to the steep hills that jut out over the Ligurian Sea. It’s quiet here, even in the summer heat of tourist season, and as we would find out, even more peaceful during off season. La Spezia is the last city before this out-of-the-way area, and although we could have taken the train, we decided to drive to the fourth village, Vernazza, where we planned to stay. Jensen enjoyed driving the hair-pin turns, while I clung to the door with my eyes either wide open to the beauty or closed tightly to the panic! We had to park the car above the village, and pack in what we needed for a couple of nights. First in order was food, with a big stein of beer. Then, lodging – fortunately, we found a place to stay; many of the hotels and restaurants are closed during the winter. Our Spartan room, with a shared bath, had a great view of the harbor.

Since it was already mid-afternoon, we decided to hike to the next village, Monterosso. What could be better than hiking along a one-person trail with switch-backs and steep climbs – all the while with gorgeous expansive views of blue water and a rapidly setting sun! As we reached the end of the trail, an entrepreneurial soul was selling water, lemonade, and wine – even this late in the season, we were ready for a cool drink. It was magical, as we timed our walk into this remote village at sunset. We found a bar open for thirsty hikers, and a great spot for dinner. Amazingly, the other couple dining there was from Seattle; Jensen exchanged names with the young man, who was a woodworker. It really is a small world. We took the train (our 2-hour walk took 5 minutes by train) back to Vernazza.

We spent the next day walking south through Manarola, Corniglia, and ending up in Riomaggiore. Imagine: harvest hills of olive trees and vineyards falling into the blue Ligurean Sea. Paradise! We came across several families harvesting their olive trees, using bright orange nets to catch the olives as they shook the branches to release their fruit. This night was the best sunset of the entire trip – the sky bruised into orange, red, and purple. We took the train back to Monterosso and found another good restaurant.

Friday morning, we packed up our bags and turned the car north, driving the autostrada to Genoa. This part of the road is almost entirely tunnels and bridges. Jensen drove that car like a pro – weaving in and out of traffic, and down to the harbor, where we found a (yet again) great place for lunch. Then, we drove back to Bagna di Lucca, stopping in Lucca to find Jensen a new pair of shoes. By this time, it had started to rain and was getting dark, but we managed to find our way back to the villa.

Saturday, November 22 – Den arrives

Jensen and I spent a quiet day, going to the grocery store and laying in some supplies, and making dinner for Den, who was flying into Pisa. Doug and Lily were dropping of Lily’s sister, Nancy, and picking up Den. It was good to have him with us – and, we had another great meal, and played games in front of the fireplace. We were spending these next few days in Bagna di Lucca.

On Sunday, we went into the village to have lunch at the restaurant owned by Ilario, who we had conversed with via the Internet about going to some vineyards and olive oil factories. We had an incredible lunch – some of the best tiramisu ever! On the way back to the villa, Den, Jensen, and I got out at the tiny village above the villa and walked through deserted section of the village – it looked as though everyone just left. The grotto with a fresco of the crucifixion was still visible.

Over the next couple of days, we ventured out, driving through olive groves and vineyards, stopping at Monte Carlo to see the wineries. Alas, we didn’t find any olive presses. We toured Lucca with Den. One morning we woke up to snow – just a dusting, but it covered the hills. The view from the villa looked out across a huge valley, with several small villages nestled in amongst all the trees, which were quickly turning autumn orange.

Thanksgiving Wednesday

A beautiful day for cooking, Lily constructed a turkey (we could only find turkey pieces in the local grocery story), as well as mouth-watering Italian artichokes, a fennel-apple compote, and of course mashed potatoes, and a sausage dressing. We played Balderdash, finished the jigsaw puzzle, and drank a lot of wine…a lovely last day in Bagna di Lucca.

Thursday, November 27 – 28

Den and Jensen packed the car, we said our good-byes to Doug and Lily and headed down the winding road one last time. After turning in our car in Lucca, we caught the train to Florence. When we inquired about a taxi to the hotel, we were told it was impossible to get there due to a demonstration. After consulted the map, we pulled, packed, and toted our luggage to our hotel, which fortunately wasn’t too far. We had to dash across a street filled with yellow-clad, banner waving demonstrators, who we think, were calling attention to the plight of agricultural workers. Ah, Italy!

Today our goal was to see Michelangelo’s David at the Academia. One lovely thing about traveling in off-season is short lines, we walked right in and spent an hour or so with David. It’s just so amazing to see these things “live.” We walked across the Ponte Vecchio to the area where Helen lived when I visited her in May. We wanted to eat in the same little restaurant, so ended up drinking wine at a local bar until the restaurant opened for dinner. Then, we headed back across the Arno to our lovely hotel.

Friday was our day for the Uffizi – another museum treat. The Medici family left an incredible cultural (well, social and political as well) footprint in Florence. Cold and overcast, it was a good day for art. We caught the late afternoon fast train to Rome.

Friday November 28 – Thursday December 4: Rome

Ah, Rome! We rented a small apartment in the Piazza Navona area, right in the middle of the old city of Rome – it was perfect, especially when we found the little Italian restaurant around the corner that didn’t even have a sign out front. We had several wonderful pasta dinners there. Here are a few of the highlights:

Wine under the gas heaters on Pantheon Square, lit up in Christmas lights.
Walking through the Forum and ruins on Palatine Hill, seeing the city of Rome stretched out before us, and watching storm clouds gather over the Colosseum – then actually walking through that huge 2000-year-old stadium where Romans gathered to watch gladiators fight to the death.
Waiting in a very long line to get into the Vatican Museum, and the incredibly convoluted passageways to the Sistine Chapel.
Having coffee at the Castel Sant’Angelo, the last fortress for threatened popes, and watching as huge flocks of birds danced in the dusk of sunset over St Peter’s dome. Then, walking over the Ponte Sant’Angelo, through statues of angels, and hearing those birds sing as they settled in the trees along the Tiber.
Walking up the Spanish Steps to see the city in the sunset.
The immense grandeur of St Peter’s Basilica, with Bernini’s Throne of Peter rising to the heavens. St Peter’s Square for people watching. Oh, and our “audience” with the Pope.
Taking a long bus ride in the rain to find the Catacombs of Priscilla, and being shown (by a nun with a flashlight) the underground burial site built under the house (and now a street) of a noble Roman family.
Everything about the Borghese Gallery: the electric tram ride, walking through the gardens to the palace, waiting in the sunshine for our appointed admittance, wandering through Cardinal Borghese’s mansion, with one of the most sumptuous art collections imaginable. The best being Bernini’s Apollo chasing Daphne – the pictures would never do it justice; this is a piece of artwork to be seen in all its glory.
But the best of all was sharing Rome with our son, Jensen.