Hi Everyone,
I've decided that I'm not a fan of public buses. They seem fine for getting me to the city center, but not great for getting back. I tried to take a bus to the train station this morning, but they wouldn't let me on with my luggage. I didn't want to miss my train, so I went back to the hostel where they called me a taxi. After 20 minutes of waiting I went back to the hostel where they called another taxi to come get me. By this time I've missed my train. The good news is that train tickets are good for 4 hours after the departure time, so I was able to hop on the next train, which arrived more than an hour after my original train. Once I arrived in Pisa, I realized that there are two train stations, and I picked the one that wasn't close to the leaning tower. I took a bus to the city center, and now I'm two hours behind schedule. Harold and I decided to skip lunch, and make the most of our time in Pisa.
The main plaza is the Piazza del Miracoli (miracles), where the Cathedral, Baptistry, and leaning bell tower are found. First Harold and I went to the Cathedral. Harold thought one of these creatures decorating the front of the cathedral looked like a hippopotamus.
There is a lot of restoration work going on at the cathedral so it made taking photos difficult. I'm beginning to learn that cathedrals are best photographed while kneeling on the floor. I especially loved the ceiling.
From there Harold and I went to take a photo with the leaning tower. Everyone tries to frame it so they are holding up the tower, but Harold wanted to channel his inner Godzilla, and push it over.
From there we went to the Baptistry. The acoustics are legendary because the echo is long enough to allow you to sing three-part harmony with yourself. I probably shouldn't have, but of course I sang a few notes to test it out.
From there I tried to take a bus back to the train station, but the bus was late, or never the right one, so when I looked across the street an saw taxi's lined up, I knew I had to take one if I was ever going to get to the train station in order to catch a later train to the Cinque Terre.
I arrived in the village of Vernazza, and after checking in at my Airbnb, I visited the village of Manarola. I finally feel like I'm really in Italy. The Cinque Terra (the five lands) are fishing villages full of colorful houses set at different heights along the hillside.
Bonus points if you can find Harold in this photo:
I walked along the cliffside, taking photos allong the way. Then I gathered with the rest of the photographers to take some shots of the city at night. I'm looking forward to relaxing a bit and sleeping in a little tomorrow.
I've decided that I'm not a fan of public buses. They seem fine for getting me to the city center, but not great for getting back. I tried to take a bus to the train station this morning, but they wouldn't let me on with my luggage. I didn't want to miss my train, so I went back to the hostel where they called me a taxi. After 20 minutes of waiting I went back to the hostel where they called another taxi to come get me. By this time I've missed my train. The good news is that train tickets are good for 4 hours after the departure time, so I was able to hop on the next train, which arrived more than an hour after my original train. Once I arrived in Pisa, I realized that there are two train stations, and I picked the one that wasn't close to the leaning tower. I took a bus to the city center, and now I'm two hours behind schedule. Harold and I decided to skip lunch, and make the most of our time in Pisa.
The main plaza is the Piazza del Miracoli (miracles), where the Cathedral, Baptistry, and leaning bell tower are found. First Harold and I went to the Cathedral. Harold thought one of these creatures decorating the front of the cathedral looked like a hippopotamus.
There is a lot of restoration work going on at the cathedral so it made taking photos difficult. I'm beginning to learn that cathedrals are best photographed while kneeling on the floor. I especially loved the ceiling.
From there Harold and I went to take a photo with the leaning tower. Everyone tries to frame it so they are holding up the tower, but Harold wanted to channel his inner Godzilla, and push it over.
From there we went to the Baptistry. The acoustics are legendary because the echo is long enough to allow you to sing three-part harmony with yourself. I probably shouldn't have, but of course I sang a few notes to test it out.
From there I tried to take a bus back to the train station, but the bus was late, or never the right one, so when I looked across the street an saw taxi's lined up, I knew I had to take one if I was ever going to get to the train station in order to catch a later train to the Cinque Terre.
I arrived in the village of Vernazza, and after checking in at my Airbnb, I visited the village of Manarola. I finally feel like I'm really in Italy. The Cinque Terra (the five lands) are fishing villages full of colorful houses set at different heights along the hillside.
Bonus points if you can find Harold in this photo:
I walked along the cliffside, taking photos allong the way. Then I gathered with the rest of the photographers to take some shots of the city at night. I'm looking forward to relaxing a bit and sleeping in a little tomorrow.
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