Tuscany: Lucca & Pisa

In the summer after the finished year 3 of high school, all students in Slovenia go on a trip that resembles spring break. Because my class wasn't capable of organising a joint vacation, we all sprang apart and took care of it on our own. As my friend and I aren't party goers, we chose a trip to Tuscany with a travel agency. The 3-day trip took us to Lucca, Pisa, Elba island, and Florence. In order to give all the sights a bit more attention, I'm splitting the trip into 3 posts.

On the first day, we went to Lucca and Pisa, two cities that were in the past rivalries in the ongoing battle for becoming the most important Tuscan city. To some, Lucca is known for its music festival, which hosts both italian and american/english influential musicians, or as Puccini's birthplace, however to me, Lucca is known as the perfect actualisation/embodiment of typical tuscan architecture, with its entangling streets, warm colored façades, and inviting boutiques and pastry shops in which one wouldn't mind spending all of their money. Other than the streets, there are also a couple of churches, all unique in their own way.

The downside to travelling with travel agencies is that most all of them never take you to the actual city of Pisa; you are left to your own devices on the Field of Miracles (Piazza dei Miracoli) for a couple of hours and the three objects on it are all you get from Pisa. They say that the third time's the charm and they are not mistaken, for it had taken me three visits to Pisa to finally get my butt on the top of the Leaning tower. The 200-and-some-more stairs to the top are not at all claustrophobic and a lot of fun to walk on, given the fact that the tower is tipped, thus gravity makes you look like a drunkard with the way you seek balance on different sides of the tower.

No matter how many typical touristy photos you've taken, there is one thing you can't leave Pisa (or any other city for that matter) without doing: having coffee closest to, or preferably right under the monument. Of course it should be taken into account that the coffee is stupid expensive, but it is the philosophy and hedonism behind the action that should make you do it. Just ask yourself how many times you get to do that. That usually gets my butt to sit down and enjoy that 4€ cappuccino.

What are your opinions on Lucca and Pisa? Have you been there?

x, Valens