Under the Tuscan Clouds
Our stop in Marseille was aborted. The high winds and muscular, white peaked swells made it perilous for a ship our size to approach the dock. It was no big deal to us since we hadn’t booked a tour in Marseille but instead, were going to take the shuttle into the old part of town and look around on our own. Instead, we had an enjoyably relaxing day at sea. Still don’t know all the nooks and crannies of the ship, but we are now intimately familiar with the stairs.
Today we are scheduled to dock in Livorno. However, because of the ongoing high winds the ship that is currently docked in our berth actually cannot leave! So now what? The captain explained since he had already aborted one stop, he wasn’t going to do so again so instead, he took us a little further down the coast. From here we would be tendered to shore and all tours would operate as before except that we were going to have to leave the ship a little earlier to make up for the longer bus ride.
The drive into Florence and then into the Cathedral Square and Field of Miracles around Pisa took a little over an hour and it passed quickly. Our guide Stephania kept us entertained with stories about Italy and Tuscany in particular, the province that holds Pisa and its famous leaning tower. It certainly does lean!
A recent multi million dollar project has stabilized the tower so it will not continue to tilt and tumble down, and exterior restoration has also taken place. It looks fabulous. Our tour didn’t include climbing up inside, for which I am quite grateful since really, it’s the visual from outside that’s really the draw. We were so lucky to see it on a cloudy day. Whenever we gazed upwards, the fast moving clouds gave the illusion that the tower was moving and from one angle, it looked like it was coming down right on top of us. “Not a good place to stand,” said Hans as we edged away.
Along the way to the cathedral and tower, you run the gauntlet of illegal hawkers. They have their counterfeit Italian bags like Gucci and Prada spread out on sheets on the ground. It’s illegal to sell or buy these knock-offs in Italy and tourists who get caught are given a hefty fine: around 2000 euros. “It’s cheaper to buy the real thing,” Stephania warned us.
Although the sky was cloudy, there was lots of blue to be seen and we didn’t get rained on. Caught the last 2 seats on a returning tender which delivered us to the mother ship at 1:55, just in time to slip into the nearly empty dining room for a late lunch.
While Hans unpacked our backpack, I soaked in the hot tub at the back of the ship and watched tiny white sailboats cavort around the bay and thick dark clouds rolls in over from behind the hills.
Today we are scheduled to dock in Livorno. However, because of the ongoing high winds the ship that is currently docked in our berth actually cannot leave! So now what? The captain explained since he had already aborted one stop, he wasn’t going to do so again so instead, he took us a little further down the coast. From here we would be tendered to shore and all tours would operate as before except that we were going to have to leave the ship a little earlier to make up for the longer bus ride.
The drive into Florence and then into the Cathedral Square and Field of Miracles around Pisa took a little over an hour and it passed quickly. Our guide Stephania kept us entertained with stories about Italy and Tuscany in particular, the province that holds Pisa and its famous leaning tower. It certainly does lean!
A recent multi million dollar project has stabilized the tower so it will not continue to tilt and tumble down, and exterior restoration has also taken place. It looks fabulous. Our tour didn’t include climbing up inside, for which I am quite grateful since really, it’s the visual from outside that’s really the draw. We were so lucky to see it on a cloudy day. Whenever we gazed upwards, the fast moving clouds gave the illusion that the tower was moving and from one angle, it looked like it was coming down right on top of us. “Not a good place to stand,” said Hans as we edged away.
Along the way to the cathedral and tower, you run the gauntlet of illegal hawkers. They have their counterfeit Italian bags like Gucci and Prada spread out on sheets on the ground. It’s illegal to sell or buy these knock-offs in Italy and tourists who get caught are given a hefty fine: around 2000 euros. “It’s cheaper to buy the real thing,” Stephania warned us.
Although the sky was cloudy, there was lots of blue to be seen and we didn’t get rained on. Caught the last 2 seats on a returning tender which delivered us to the mother ship at 1:55, just in time to slip into the nearly empty dining room for a late lunch.
While Hans unpacked our backpack, I soaked in the hot tub at the back of the ship and watched tiny white sailboats cavort around the bay and thick dark clouds rolls in over from behind the hills.
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