Leaning Tower of Pisa - Cinque Terre

Our last day in Cortona was spent relaxing, packing and we walked into Carmucia where the Market was in full swing.
On the 5th September we drove from Cortona to Lucca which took about 2.5 hours. On the way we stopped in Pisa where we visited the Leaning Tower. I think we would get the prize for worst photos ever taken of holding the tower up but, hey, we tried 😂 It was a lot of fun with a great atmosphere. After a short visit we headed to Lucca.

A couple of thoughts about travelling on the Autostrade/Motorway: Road cones are non existent, they appear to do most of the roadworks at night, if they do have to do any work during the day a man stands there holding a red flag waving it. I wouldn’t want his job when the speed limit on the Autostrade is 130km and they don’t slow down for anything even though the speed limit might be 40km around the roadworks.
Speed cameras are advertised on google maps and on signs on the motorway. I think this is a good idea as this is the only thing that makes the traffic slow down.

On the 6 September we purchased a trip off Get Your Guide. A 6.5 hour boat ride from La Spezia around Cinque Terre. What a fantastic day. There were only 9 people on our small boat, our guide was fun, he told us the information we needed to know about the villages but otherwise just fed us and offered refreshments. We had an hours drive back to Lucca from La Spezia so refreshments were kept to a minimum for us. He took us close into each village, we had two stops for swimming in the warm seas then we stopped for lunch in Monterosso before travelling back down the coast at a leisurely pace. We could see the train operating which mostly goes through the mountains to appear in each village. We could see the 12km walkway that connects each village. My only regret was not being able to walk this track but our day was so magical that I quickly forgot about that.

We had 3 young Americans on our boat who were stationed in Naples at the Navy base. They were a lot of fun, I have included a photo of them.
There were vineyards all along the mountains above the villages mostly growing white wine. They were obviously terraced but they must be incredibly difficult to work in and get the produce out. Our guide, Simone informed us that it was among the best white wine in Tuscany. They also grow lemons.

On the way home I saw a mountain that was mostly white and looked as though it was being quarried. Out came Mr Google and he told me that is where they quarry marble from. Then we noticed all the businesses lining the motorway that had the marble in big blocks and in sheets. You can visit the Carrara marble quarry area, from guided tours in jeeps to creative sculpture courses. Maybe next time 😉Baca lagi