Italy- Week 3

I bid farewell to my friends and boarded the train to Lucca, a small town in northern Tuscany where I would be staying for the next 3 days. I was in the beginnings of the nasty cold that Phil had, so I wasn't feeling all that spectacular. It did feel a bit liberating to be going off on my own, and know that I was responsible only for myself for the next 6 days.

I arrived at the Lucca train station, and called Anna, my host, to come and fetch me. We arrived at Al Tondone, her B&B and got settled in. It was a sweet little home, roughly 2 km or so outside of the walled city. There were bikes to use to take into town, and obviously you could walk in. Hmm, ok; I actually had not done a ton of research on where I was staying, as it was the same B&B that Phil and

Paula stayed in. I grabbed a bike, and made my way into town. Now 2 km isn't far at all. However, I

can't tell you the last time I was on a bike, and I wasn't feeling the greatest, the congestion in my head weighing me down a little. And the roads in Lucca are quite narrow and without sidewalks; stop signs and speed limits are optional in Italy. I navigated towards the town, as cars zipped by me, and got myself through the round-a-bout without dying, and into the walled town. It was death defying experience, but I keep giving myself pep talks as I spied grandma's and sweet old men biking the same paths as though they were only people on the road. Truth be told, I was a little rattled by the time I made it into town, and knew there was NO way I could bike or walk home in the dark each night after getting dinner. Especially since the restaurants don't open until 7 or 7:30 for dinner.

After wandering around the city for a few hours, a gelato to make myself feel better, I biked back home. After freshening up, I made my way back into town for dinner at Orti- a restaurant that Anna recommended. If I being completely honest, I felt a little lonely this first day and sorry for myself- for both the cold and the challenge of getting around. So I ordered myself a nice little half bottle of Brunello di Montalcino to go with my fried zucchini flowers and dinner of bistecca ala fiorentina. It was delicious, and more than my one night of lodging! But the extravagance made me feel much better. The next morning I woke feeling much more at ease and spent the day in town, people watching and eating gelato and looking at art and just being. I had an amazing lunch of rabbit cacciatore at another one of Anna's recommendations.

I did make my way over to Pisa one afternoon, an easy 25 minute train ride. While the city itself wasn't all that impressive, seeing the Field of Miracles and the Leaning Tower was. One minute you're walking down a city street and you turn the corner to see yourself staring at the Leaning Tower- and it's just there. I grabbed supplies for a dinner at the house that evening. I spent the evening drinking wine that I had brought from Umbria and eating my afternoon's procurement, and reading. It was quiet and relaxing and lovely. I met a woman staying at the house who was attending a language school for 2 weeks in Florence; I tried to glean information about her current and past ventures (Verona) with language school. I could do that, I thought; that would be pretty fun.

Lucca was a lovely quiet town. I loved that there weren't many Americans here, and for the most part, no one spoke English. I was forced use my Italian, which had negatives and positives. Obviously, being forced to speak Italian helped me hone my tongue better, but when traveling alone,

it made meeting people a little more challenging.

On day 4, I was on the train again for my last leg of the trip, to Cinque Terre. As the train came into

the first town, I'd get glimpses of the sea from the tunnel- it was so beautiful, it brought tears to my eyes. I was staying in town 4, Vernazza, and just steps from the water. The train is the only mode of transport between the towns, but there's also a trail that you can hike between them all as well. I got settled into my room, and then promptly took the train to Montorossa, town 5. The beauty of this place is somewhat indescribable; the Ligurian Sea sparkles a clear blue-green, the rocks jutting from the water, the steep hillsides are planted with grapes of

Sciachetra, the famous wine from this region. Montorossa is the busiest of the towns it seems, and emanates a more resort-y feel. The beaches are a little rocky, the water is warm, and the beaches are filled with sunbathers and vacationers. I took the

boat back, stopping at all of the 5 towns so I could see each one from the waters view. The towns are small and colorful, each one full of character. While in Cinque Terre, I spent my days wandering each village, hiking between the towns, eating great meals (the pesto is amazing, and I had the best minestrone, ever), staring out at the sea, and just taking in all of the natural beauty that surrounded me.

Traveling alone was a good thing. I wasn't necessarily lonely, although there were a few times when it would have been nice to swap stories of my day with someone. I did meet some nice people, including a newly married couple from Georgia. It was empowering in many ways to be forced to figure things out on my own. The reaction I got from people when they found out I was traveling alone was interesting; in general people seemed to be impressed and thought it to be a good thing. I think I learned a few things about myself, and I definitely saw it as both an adventure and an opportunity for growth.

My time in Italy seemed to end so quickly, and before I knew it, I was in the line boarding an airplane for the states. My camera loaded up with over 650 photos, my backpack full of art I purchased throughout my trip from street artists and edible goodies to help remind my appetite of my travels here. As I settled into my seat for the eleven hour flight to NY, all I could think about was what my next adventure might be..