A journey of discovery through the landscapes, art, food, and people of Italy
Day 9: Pisa and Cinque Terra
We headed to Pisa this morning. I had been prepared to not like it because lots of people in various forums rated it as skippable compared to other sites and talked about all the commercialized, touristy sellers ruining the ambience. I think because I was prepared for this, it did not bother us, and we loved the chance to see Pisa! That tower really leans! I thought it was so funny that they fixed the tower in the 90’s but decided not to straighten it, even though they could have, because they thought no one would come to see them anymore. We enjoyed watching all of the people climbing up on the fence and trying to "hold up" the tower in various poses. The tower, cathedral and baptistery were all beautiful.After a quick lunch of pizza, we headed onward to the Cinque Terre.
We were so excited to be heading to the Cinque Terre, as it was at the top of our wish list of places to see! We arrived to stunning, clear blue skies; lots of warm sun and gorgeous turquoise weather. We were in awe! Donald spoiled us by hiring a little (and I mean LITTLE!) truck to carry our luggage for us, so we enjoyed our walk through town to our hotels. Half the group stayed right in town and the other half stayed at a hotel perched up higher, Hotel Pasquale. You couldn't go wrong with either place, but we loved the view from our higher balcony. We grabbed a soda and enjoyed the view from our hotel dining area and turned in our laundry to get washed - it was done that same day!
Donald planned a little time for appetizers on the hotel balcony before we all walked down to the hotel in town to have a pesto making demonstration and dinner. The couple that owns the hotels also made this delicious dinner for us. The woman has lived in the Cinque Terre for 71 years and taught us the importance of using a wooden pestle (a metal one causes sparks which changes the flavor). Her husband rushed around filling everyones plates with seconds and making sure everyone loved their food. It was a wonderful night!
