"You may have the universe if I may have ITALY." --Giuseppe Verdi

Oh, Hi there! Did you miss us?

As has been pointed out to me NUMEROUS times by a certain travel partner of mine, I have yet to chronicle our last wonderful trip during my time in Sweden (in May, we spent 10 days in Italy). Now, in my defense, my mother did arrive in Stockholm for her visit only one day after we returned from this trip. So in response to a certain someone's sassing, I say that this rapid turn-over of events was his idea and, therefore, he is responsible for a portion of the delay in the publishing of this post. =)

But back to my original subject, Italy. I think this trip was one of our best ones yet. We started in Pisa for a day, next we hoped a train to Florence where we stayed with my mother's Italian family from when she studied abroad there over 40 years ago (Sorry, Mom!). Finally, after a few days in Florence, it was on to the Cinque Terre for a couple nights and then back home via Pisa.

We landed in Pisa on a beautiful, sunny day. After navigating the cramped and chaotic local bus, we were rewarded with a beautiful view of the Piazza dei Miracoli (the Field of Miracles) on the way to our hotel. 

The Leaning Tower and the Cathedral of Pisa

Soon after construction started in 1173, the Leaning Tower, initially intended to be the bell tower for the Cathedral, began to tip as a result of the marshy land it sits on. You can't see it in this photo but there is an elaborate system in place at the bottom of the tower to keep it from leaning further.

EEE! Don't get smooshed!

We took our time enjoying the weather and the spectacular contrast of vibrant green, crisp white, and deep blue.

Us with the Tower

Here is a view of the Cathedral and Leaning Tower from behind the Baptistry.



We also had a chance to check out the inside of the Cathedral. Based on the beauty of the outside, I honestly didn't expect much inside. Boy, was I surprised!

The main nave of the Cathedral of Pisa

But it wasn't all fun and games... there was work to be done. It is part of my family lore that there is a similar photo of my Dad doing his part to hold up La Torre (the tower). I was glad (and surprisingly not embarrassed) to keep the family tradition alive.

It's a tough job but somebody has to do it.

Next, we explored the vibrant streets of Pisa. Pisa initially prospered as a result of its location on the Arno river. It maintained maritime activities and prominence in the region until the 1500s when the major port of Tuscany was relocated from Pisa to Livorno. Currently, Pisa is well-known now for the Leaning Tower and also for the University of Pisa.

Colorful houses in the sun

Almost every street was this picturesque.

Ugh. Busted. I guess it's about time.

Golden yellow

While most of the buildings expressed the energy of Pisa through the use of bright, strong colors (see above), some of them used other methods.

We saw several buildings with Fresco motifs

And as always, we tried devoured the local fare.

Yum.

All in all, I think Pisa surprised us with how pleasant and picturesque it was.

Arrivederci, Pisa!

After Pisa, we took a train to Florence for a few days. As I mentioned before we were fortunate to stay with my mother's friends and have the comforts of home and an insider's perspective on the city. We spent the first day poking around the city, taking it in.

View of the Duomo - The symbol of Florence

Florence, the capital city of the Tuscany region, was the birthplace of the Renaissance. Initially prosperous due to its cloth industry, trading, and banking, Florence was also known for its artist population (Michelangelo and Leonardo among others). Dante also grew up in Florence. Some of its well-known sights include the Duomo, the Uffizi, and Michelangelo's David.

The Duomo (or the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore) has the 3rd largest nave out of all Christian churches. The detailed facade consists of pink, green, and white Tuscan marble. Construction of this massive church began before the technology of the dome was available. Brunelleschi, a local architect, created this dome- the first Renaissance dome of many to follow.

Up-close view of the facade

Another view of the Duomo

The Last Judgement, painted by Giorgio Vasari and Federico Zuccari

Candles inside the Duomo

We also spent time pigeon and people watching in the Palazzo Vecchio, the old city palace/ town hall. This fortified square is where Michelangelo's original David stood until 1873.

Statues in the Palazzo Vecchio. The bronze statue in the front is Perseus holding the head of Medusa.

Another view of the Palazzo.

As was true with most of Florence, the Palazzo was buzzing with tourists

Next we explored the Ponte Vecchio (old bridge), the oldest bridge across the river Arno that runs through Florence. This narrow bridge is strictly a pedestrian zone and is lined with mostly jewelry shops.

Ponte Vecchio - I loved how the shops seemed to hang out over the water

Taking a rest on the Ponte Vecchio

Matching shoes! We're not usually that kind of couple... =)

Our day finished with a tour of the Uffizi and dinner/ sight-seeing with my mom's friends. The Uffizi Gallery comprises the greatest collection of Italian paintings in the world. Some of the artists on display include Giotto, Leonardo, Raphael, Titian, Michelangelo, and Botticelli. I particularly liked the Botticelli and Raphael pieces, especially Raphael's Madonna of the Goldfinch. Given the Uffizi's location and shape (a U-shaped building), we also enjoyed beautiful views of the city.

The Uffizi interior courtyard

View from the Uffizi's window

After the thoroughly overwhelming experience that is the Uffizi, it was wonderful to spend the evening with our hosts. We had incredible pizza and gelato followed by a sight-seeing excursion to the Piazzale Michelangelo and Fiesole, a nearby town that has special meaning for our hosts (one was married there and another was born there).

Our wonderful hosts!

View of Florence from the Piazzale Michelangelo

The next day, we were up early to see Michelangelo's David at the Galleria dell'Accademia. This museum also includes one of Michelangelo's unfinished pieces, Prisoners. When thinking about seeing David, it seemed to me to be something that you did while in Florence. I wasn't very excited; it just seemed like another check mark.

However, I was completely blow away by David and Michelangelo's other pieces, even if unfinished. It is impossible to capture the life-like, captivating quality that these pieces radiate in a photo or in a tourist shop chachka. The fierceness in David's expression was completely unexpected and almost unsettling to look at but you couldn't pull your eyes away.

Some of Michelangelo's unfinished pieces (foreground) and David.

David - He is PISSED

An interesting anecdote we heard while in the museum involved an artist coming into the Accademia and filing down part of David's toes. The man was stopped as soon as the docents realized what was going on but he left some lasting damage. Apparently David's feet are not proportional and this man was trying to correct the masterpiece.

Once we were able to pry ourselves away, we visited Dante's house, which was incredibly disappointing, and the Santa Croce church, a favorite of both my Mom and my future sister-in-law, Julie! 

Santa Croce Church

  
I poked around inside while Phil snapped pictures outside. The Santa Croce church is the home to the tombs of many great Florentines, such as Galileo, Michelangelo, Machiavelli, and Dante. It is also well-known for its frescoes by Giotto.

Frescoes

Sorry for the blur

The main nave, unfortunately, the alter was under construction

  

Ooh-ing and Aah-ing over, we stopped for lunch and discovered this awesome gadget.

Little wine decanter/aerator

And after we made good use of said gadget, we needed to take a little nap...

I'm convinced this plaza was made for post-wine snoozes

Exhausted from the city sights (and libations), we spent the rest of the day soaking up the sun and atmosphere.

Strong late-afternoon sun on the bold houses.

Picture perfect

View of Florence from where we stayed.

The Duomo, hovering over the busy Florentine streets.

After a brief morning of shopping at the San Lorenzo market (where I bought my leather jacket, yay!), we headed to the Cinque Terre. We boarded a train to La Spezia and then Vernazza, the 4th little town in the Cinque Terre. The Cinque Terre or the five lands consists of five towns: Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso. In the Fall of 2011, a severe storm caused flooding in both Vernazza and Monterosso. 

We decided to stay in Vernazza based on recommendations from Rick Steves (our travel guru). Unfortunately, we didn't find out about the flooding until we arrived. While the town was a little out of sorts, many of the store fronts were completely washed away, and the harbor was a bit of a mess, I think we are happy we stayed in Vernazza. There were several nice restaurants and our pensione was very comfortable and even came with a rooftop terrace!

Below you can see efforts to restore the town's harbor.

These dump trucks were running all day, digging up dirt from the water.

View of the harbor from above

We arrived in the evening and, after some slight difficulty, located our pensione. The streets resemble a labyrinth, but in a charming way. Work had finished for the day. Little children ran around with their toy trucks while older men stood together chatting as the sun went down. It was incredibly quintessential and stereotypically predictable. Initially, I felt like an intruder, obviously a tourist come to disrupt their peace. After a few moments, though, of sitting on a bench, watching the waves come in and out, I began to think of our time in the Cinque Terre more as the opportunity to appreciate and validate their way of life and the beautiful towns that they have built. I know, I know, corny. But as our days there went on, I did find myself wondering whether or not I could be happy living in a Cinque Terre town. Living within walking distance of everything I truly need, enjoying a slower pace of life. The beautiful Mediterranean sea backdrop didn't hurt, either.

Vernazza harbor at night

Vernazza from above

In addition to causing serious damage to Vernazza and Monterosso, the floods also took out the trails between Vernazza and Corniglia and also between Corniglia and Manarola. While there were alternate trails to connect these towns via hiking, they were much further up the hills with inferior views. Now, let's be honest, I'm a little bit lazy. So while I was initially disappointed that we wouldn't be able to "do it all," I think it turned out for the best that we hiked from Vernazza to Monterosso (the hardest of the trails) and from Riomaggiore to Manarola (the easiest of the trails).

Yep, I'm all smiles... must still be early in the trail... =)

We made friends!! Or at least, I did!

The trail between Vernazza and Monterosso

Agricultural terraces

The hills rising up above the Cinque Terre villages used to be filled with agricultural terraces. I would say that about 70% of the terraces are still maintained, mostly the lower ones. Grapes and olives are the main products although we did see and smell lemons.

View of Monterosso from the trail

View of Monterosso from the other side

Nazi Pillbox Bunker

After all that hiking and beauty, it was time for a rest.

Incredible

One of the best parts of the Cinque Terre, especially after coming from Florence, was the lack of museums. We got a feel for the region by walking all around it. Here are a few photos from Monterosso.

St. Fancis and a wolf enjoy the view

A look down into the zig-zag of Monterosso

Besides hiking the trails, ferries and trains connect the Cinque Terre. We took a few boat rides, enjoying the sun and sea spray. It was also a nice way to see the towns from a different perspective.

One of the ferries

We're on a boat!

Corniglia - the Cinque Terre town perched up on a hill

Manarola from the sea

Beautiful rocks and sea foam

Riomaggiore - the town where my parents stayed 40 years ago!

A local man enjoying the view

View of Riomaggiore from down on the harbor rocks

The second "trail" we walked was the Via dell'Amore. This walkway is paved, wide enough for baby carriages, and like something from a movie set. The views are just spectacular.

Us at the beginning. Note the love locks at the top of the gate.

There are several traditions for couples visiting the Via dell'Amore. Love locks or similar small tokens with initials and dates are scattered all along the walkway, attached anywhere there is a little nook of space or rail.

Close up of the "love locks"

Another tradition is to leave a bit of graffiti on the walls of an open-aired tunnel. Some examples are below.

As an avid Rick Steve's fan, I loved seeing this on the wall.

Obviously, we joined in on the tradition. =)

Writing our names of the Via dell'Amore (the walkway of love)

Close up

After we finished the Via dell'Amore and arrived in Manarola, we took a vineyard walk around Manarola.

View of Manarola from the grape terraces above the town

Taken from the furthest point out towards the sea in Manarola

Once more but with us!

One of the main advantages of traveling in May is that you beat the tourist rush. We were able to walk right in to restaurants and sit at tables with incredible views.

The view from our table at dinner.

Our delicious dinner

The sunset reflected in a wine glass.

Another sunset view from a different angle

But everything wasn't perfect all the time. We planned a half-day trip to Porto Venere, a nearby town, but found this sign when trying to board the boat:

Oh no!

So instead we took the train.

The walkway to one of the train stations

Yaay Train!

Some of us were more (or less) excited than others...

But we made it!

Porto Venere - view from the breakwater

View of the Church of St. Peter and Byron's grotto from the sea

We also had the chance to do some relaxing on the various rock beaches.

The beach near Riomaggiore

Testing the waters

And enjoy a beer with our favorite travel partner, Rick.

 

After a long trip home, involving an overnight in Pisa, we arrived back home to Stockholm and noticed a familiar skyline in the metro billboards. Florence!