nehal : Sep 18, 2005
Met everyone for breakfast after almost oversleeping. Hit the road to Pisa around 9AM. As everyone was milling about, finding their bikes, I took the opportunity to stash the stuffed puppy into Beth’s bike bag. The ride was a little wet but not rainy, and the cool, cloudy weather definitely helped. We stopped for bit at a coffee house along the way, where I had myself a capucchino.
Pisa
Pisa was a total tourist trap. Peddlers (not the kind on bikes – the kind that want to sell your Roleks watches) and tourist shops and, of course, tons of tourists. We went into the Baptistry, where I played den mother to the 11 of us who opted to go in. Luckily the sun came out for our short stay in Pisa and lunch, and I managed to get some nice pictures, along with the photo I wanted with the tower.
Pisa to Casciana Terme
This part was a little tricky, but we did a good job sticking together. The roads stayed mostly flat nearly the entire way to Casciana Terme, passing through farm land and small tows. Along the way, I tried to snap a few pictures of the group as we rode and I noticed that someone had left me a present in my bike bag – a calendar of artistic penises. I eventually figured out the culprits were Fred and Lisa, so at the next stop I snuck it into Anna’s bag. After another pit stop and more espresso, we started the long climb to Casciana Terme. The road went from asphalt to gravel and back to Asphalt as we approached Sant’Ermo. The road took us down briefly from Sant’Ermo and back up to Casciana Terme; there were some amazing views along the way.
Casciana Terme
We pulled into the hotel and I were helping unload the luggage when I heard, “You’re going to die a slow, terrible death, Nehal” from Anna. Made it up to my room, threw on my swim trunks and joined the others in the lukewarm hot tub. I also decided to swim a couple laps in the cold pool. Before long, I decided I needed a shower and a snack before dinner, lest I pass out. The kind man at the front desk pointed me to the hotel bar, where I had some crackers, chips, and water. Fred, Lisa, and I went across the street to the park where we heard a live band, saw Anna and Patrick dancing, and got a cup of coffee.
Dinner was fun because we were all together, but none too impressive, save the risotto and the gelato. Turned in early again to rest up for a day of hills to Volterra.
nehal : Sep 17, 2005
Met everyone for breakfast at the hotel buffet, then to start the orientation for the trip, introductions, etc. Our guide for Lucca, Antoinella arrived and we set off on a walking tour of the city walls and the different areas – the Cathedrals, the old Roman Forum, the palace where Elisa (Napoleon’s sister) lived while she ruled Lucca, and the statue of Giacomo Puccini outside his home. We bid farewell to Antoinella at the old Roman Coliseum (now an oval Piazza) and made our way to the Guinigi Tower (the one with the oak trees at the top) to take some pictures and then to find a quick lunch. Antoinella was a great guide – she knew a great deal about the city and its history (apparently, you have to pass a pretty tough test to become a tour guide – and you only get one shot at it). She spoke excellent English, and her accent was an interesting mix of Italian and British English; she seemed to randomly switch between the two.
At 2PM we were ready to go on our first ride – to the Villa Grabau. The ride took us onto the city walls and then outside the city, along a river, and up to the Villa. The ride wasn’t too difficult, other than dealing with the traffic, narrow roads, and being in an unfamiliar place. The villa itself was pretty, but the tour could use some work – not very informative and not a whole lot to see. There was a beautiful garden, but again, not much to see. We rode back to Lucca the way we came, and managed to avoid most of the rain. In town, we stopped a the local bike shop to get Kyle’s bike looked at, pick up some cycling jerseys, socks, and gelato.
After we got back to the hotel, Fred, Lisa, Patrick, Anna, and I went for a quick run around the city walls to work up an appetite.
Dinner took us to the same restaurant, not that it bothered me. We had bruschetta for appetizers, rissoto and tordelli for the first course, and the hare and sliced beef for the second. Dessert brought two types of cakes – one with a ricotta cheese and mixed berry filling, and another with walnuts and figs.
We did not make it out tonight, even though it was Saturday. We were all too full, too tired, and we all had to pack for tomorrow’s ride to Pisa and Casciana Terme.
nehal : Sep 16, 2005
Took the train from Florence to Lucca. They don’t really tell you which train you need to take, and then they don’t tell you which station is coming up. Luckily the guy sitting next to me was nice enough to tell me when I needed to get ready. At the train station is where another adventure began. I hailed a taxi and told the driver where I needed to go – Hotel Ilaria. We drove partway through Lucca, and then back out towards Pisa. I aked him where the hotel was, and he said it was on the way to Pisa. When we pulled into the Hotel Elise, I told him it wasn’t my hotel. Long story short, he told me not to worry, apologized, and got me to my hotel.
I walked into the hotel and was immediately greeted by a young and incredibly friendly staff. They were able to guess who I was without hardly having said a word. I asked if anyone else from the tour had checked in, and went to go chat with our guides – Mike and Huibertha – as I waited for the others. After sitting in the lobby for a while and reading some books (in Italian), I realized I was hungry. Being almost 2:30, I asked the staff to recommend a place to eat. They called ahead and had the restaurant around the corner hold the kitchen open for me. Wow! Delicious pasta and a t-bone steak. I returned to the hotel to find Fred and Lisa had checked in, so we went out for a walk, found a bar, and had some afternoon wine and snacks.
We returned to the hotel after wandering through town a bit, expecting the others to have arrived. Apparently they got the same recommendation for dinner, and I ordered something light. Some wine, appetizers, and being with friends made for a very enjoyable dinner. It was so nice to be dining with friends again! After dinner, we set out to explore Lucca and find another bar. Along the way, we found a concert in one of the piazzas – a full orchestra and opera singer, on the steps of a buiding, in the open air, under the moon at 10:30. You just don’t see that in the US.
We eventually found a bar and had a couple drinks while watching a ridiculous Italian beauty pageant on TV. Ridiculous becuase all the women were gorgeous, wearing skimpy bikinis, and had to do the “talent” portion in a bikini. Some of them didn’t really have much talent – fixing a woman’s ponytail, coreographed martial arts fight, and hitting a target with a bow and arrow – from ten feet away! The real entertainment came from getting Lisa all riled up with our (okay, my) mysogynistic comments.
nehal : Sep 15, 2005
Thought about getting up early and going for a run, but decided against it as I didn’t really know my way around. But I still got up early, ate some breakfast at the hotel, and walked around before meeting up with the city tour. It was actually pretty good – we drove across the Arno and up to Piazzala Michelangelo and walked around a bit there, getting a history lesson along the way. Then back down the hill and across the river to explore on foot. We went to the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore (The Duomo) where we learned about its history and construction (it took only 170 years to build). Then off to the Accademia to see some Renaissance paintings as well as The David and some of Michelangelo’s unfinished sculptures.
I got some bruschetta, gnocchi, wine, and coffee at the Ristorante de Casa da Dante before heading back across the Arno (Oltrarno) to the Palazzo Pitti and Boboli Gardens. Walking around this immense garden was amazing – statues and fountains everywhere, and I probably only covered about half of it. Near the exit is where I saw my first sculpture of a fat person – a fat guy sitting on a tortoise. Poor tortoise. Also in the garden was a porcelain museum. Most of the stuff here was downright gaudy, but there were some beautiful pieces – the most interesting was a set of cups and bowls painted to look like they’d been carved from wood.
After leaving the Palazzo Pitti (and feeling quite warm in my jeans and shirt), I went back to classical Florence, crossing the Ponte Vecchio. I passed the Uffizi – I don’t think I’ll get a chance to go this trip, since I saw a ridiculous line earlier in the day, and I’d heard reservations were a month out. But that was secondary. My current mission was gastronomic – find Vivoli and taste some of their famous gelato. They had a metric butt-load of flavors from which to choose, including melon, peach, pear, chocolate, orange, chocolate orange, coffee, chocolate and coffee, banana, and lemon. I opted for the lemon, and holy crap was it strong and sweet! I made my way back to the hotel just in time to crash from the sugar high and rest my tired feet. I ended up napping for four(!) hours and now it’s probably too late to get dinner. Thank goodness I’m not hungry!
nehal : Sep 14, 2005
San Francisco to Amsterdam
I made sure to get to the airport early. There was no way I was going to miss this trip. When I finally sat down on the plane, I ended up between an Indian guy on his way to Amsterdam for business and a little old Iranian man who must’ve been about 80. He did the usual – ask me where I’m from (no, where I’m really from. It was interesting watching him throughout the flight – he’d get up and socialize, get all excited when the flight attendants were serving food – and then complain that he couldn’t open the single-serving containers. I lost count of how many wrappers I opened for him. And then when we got ice cream, he complained that it was still frozen and too hard. The flight attendant told him he needed to let it thaw – and then got him another one. He’s a slick one. Most of the time, I’m out within five minutes of strapping myself into the airplane seat. Not this flight. I think I got about 20 minutes of sleep. Maybe it was the beer, wine, post-dinner Bailey’s and coffee?
Amsterdam to Rome
This portion of the trip was pretty uneventful. The flight was short and uneventful; I managed to get some sleep.
Rome Airport to Rome Termini
Somehow the guy driving the train missed the stop for the Termini. The train stopped for a few minutes, turned it off, turned it back on, got us to the station. There was an American couple for whom this was just another delay in what seemed a long string of delays just getting to Italy. Well, once we arrived, I realized I was going to miss my train to Florence. So, the adventure began – find the place to change my reservation, pay the 3 Euros, then find the train. At least the train ride was uneventful and comfortable.
Florence
I got to Florence and left the station, only to realize I didn’t really have a clue how to get to my hotel. I knew the address and that it was close to the station, but so were about a hundred other hotels. First task: Find the street – via Nazionale. No small feat, as the streets didn’t seem to be terribly well-marked – at least not with bright green signs. Luckily, after some wandering around and looking like a lost American tourist, I found it, checked in, showered, and made my way out to find some dinner. The guy at the front desk recommended Zá-Zá and it seemed like a pretty popular place with a bunch of seating right on the piazza. Of course it then took me a bit of waiting in line to realize that I had to get on the list and then wait in line. Dinner was quiet – at least at my table for one – but there were other groups in the basement with me who kept things pretty lively as I indulged in some pecorino cheese, rigatoni sorrentini, and tiramisú.