Much as I despise crowds, I did want to see the famous leaning tower at Pisa. I guess. And yes, it sure does lean. In fact it is a bow leg – leans one way for a few courses, then the engineers tried to straighten it up, building the following courses at a slight angle….
The City of the Day today was Lucca, and this was one of the rare occasions when there was an echo of Rome. In fact the town predates the Romans, having been settled by the Etruscans, but became a Roman city in 180BC. Lucca is a walled city – or should I say still is…
The tour of Tuscany was about culture, art, and a glimpse of Italian medieval history. During the middle ages a number of powerful city-states held sway over much of Italy. There was Venice, of course – which was not on our itinerary and not in Tuscany. But we would visit one of Venice’s and Rome’s…
It was time to say goodbye to La Spezia and hello to Montecatini Terme in Tuscany. Once again we caught a local train, then changed to an Intercity, the move happening without mishap. But I have to say the local trains in particular could use some maintenance. The train stopped at Carraras, the site of…
On a beautiful day we took the train back to Monterosso and walked down from the station to find a ticket office for the ferry – and, of course, had to queue. We did manage to get near the front, though. Tickets purchased, we mooched around until it was time to leave. It was a…
We decided to go to Portovenere for the Assumption Day holiday on 15th August (big deal in Italy). Apparently it’s the day the body of Mary, Mother of Jesus was raised to Heaven. You can see on the map Portovenere is at the entrance to the Bay of Poets and it’s a popular holiday destination…
Before we could visit the Cinque Terre villages on Italy’s coastline we had to get to Italy. We had to wait on the River Royale for a while before we were taken to the airport, so we checked to see how our EasyJet flight measured up as far as ‘on time’ was concerned. Back in…
The River Royale docked at Bordeaux in the evening so that we could be taken on a night tour of the city after dinner. We boarded open-topped buses and were driven around the city streets while our local guide pointed out the various attractions. I have to say it was just like driving around any…
Our river boat was tied up at Libourne on the Dordogne river. In the morning the mist burned off, promising a beautiful day. The river is always turbulent, probably as a result of the tidal movements opposing the river’s own flow. In fact, the Dordogne is one of those rivers which has a tidal flow…
Today we went off on a two-hour bus trip to Remy Martin distillery to see brandy being made. It was fascinating. Brandy is made from grapes and heat. Rather than me rabbiting on about things I know little about, I suggest you read this article. I’ll just mention the bits and pieces which interested me….