... We stayed just outside Lucca in a lovely converted farmhouse with a beautiful pool surrounded by olive and oleader trees and stunning views of the mountains.
Lucca itself has the beautiful circular Piazza Anfiteatro at its centre, where 4 or 5 storey terracota and yellow painted buildings ... Read review
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Advantages: Cycling around the city walls Disadvantages: Parking
...We stayed just outside Lucca in a lovely converted farmhouse with a beautiful pool surrounded by olive and oleader trees and stunning views of the mountains.
Lucca itself has the beautiful circular Piazza Anfiteatro at its centre, where 4 or 5 storey terracota and yellow painted buildings curve around enclosing you in another world. Cafe tables around the edge let you sit and watch the world go by.
The whole city is ... ...
Lucca also has a tower with a large tree growing from the top and another even taller tower next to the Duomo San Martino (cathedral). This is a nice place to visit to get away from the heat and bustle and sit and think. The darkness of Italian churches and cathedrals and the smell of insense and candles makes for a very calming experience. Remember to take something to cover shoulders and don't wear shorts...the guide books are actually ... more
Ah, holiday memories. We stayed just outside Lucca in a lovely converted farmhouse with a beautiful pool surrounded by olive and oleader trees and stunning views of the mountains.
Lucca itself has the beautiful circular Piazza Anfiteatro at its centre, where 4 or 5 storey terracota and yellow painted buildings curve around enclosing you in another world. Cafe tables around the edge let you sit and watch the world go by.
The whole city is surrounded by a huge, very wide 16 th century city wall. We hired bicycles and cycled around the tree-lined pathway that runs along the top. From here you can catch glimpses of the narrow little streets within where much of it is pedestrianised, apart from the obligatory mad moped riders!
Lucca also has a tower with a large tree growing from the top and another even taller tower next to the Duomo San Martino (cathedral). This is a nice place to visit to get away from the heat and bustle and sit and think. The darkness of Italian churches and cathedrals and the smell of insense and candles makes for a very calming experience. Remember to take something to cover shoulders and don't wear shorts...the guide books are actually right on that one.
There are lots of little shops along the narrow alley ways. We found a lovely toy shop selling wooden toys, puppets, etc., loads of amazing delicatessant food shops and the usual tacky tourist souveneir shops.
If you tire of Lucca itself, it is very well placed to reach many other places in Tuscany. We went to Pisa and made it to the top of the tower. We also went a bit further afield to the Island of Elba, taking our hire car over on the Ferry. What a beautiful spot. So mountainous for such a small island. We took the little, yellow, two-person cable-cars up to the top of Monte Capanne (1000m high).
Another lovely spot near to Lucca is Montecatini Alto, reached by an old vernicular railway built in 1885. Sitting looking out across the plain, with the warm wind blowing through your hair as you wait for the trip back down, you can just imagine the smartly dressed ladies and gentlemen of the 19th century promenading around the tree lined avenue with their parasols, overdressed for the heat!
If you want to escape the heat for an hour or so try a tour underground at Grotto del Vento. Here we saw stalagtites and mites accompanied by an extremely good guide who credited us with a bit of intelligence unlike the British versions we have experienced in the Peak District.
And then there are the beaches. The less said about them the better, unless of course you enjoy regimented rows of sunbeds. Coming from Norfolk we prefer the more natural beach experience with sand dunes and birds and vast expanses of ... nobody!
Advantages: One of the wonderful walls i've ever seen Disadvantages:
...Renaissance walls, the town of Lucca can boast a well kept historical centre, where the medieval palaces form a natural line along the main streets. Worth a visit: the Cathedral and St. Michele's Church, both in the Romanesque style of Pisa and St. Frediano's Church. In the Cathedral, the famous masterpiece of Jacopo della Quercia can be admired: the sarcophagus of Ilaria del Carretto, a marble sculpture realised in such a fine manner that seems ...
giannit 16.09.2000
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful Review of Lucca (Italy)
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Advantages: Central location, the pure nature of the cafe Disadvantages: A good, but not amazingly extensive choice of things to buy
a shopping trip in the nearby arcades.
The shop is on the other side of the room - it isn't especially large, nor my favourite Lindt shop of all time (that would be a tie between the 5th Avenue one in NYC and a gorgeous little place in Lucca, Italy), but it is perfectly acceptable. They have a decent selection of the tablet bars, and of Lindor truffles and other delicacies, as well as boxes of the fresh chocolates they make on site which taste beautifully fresh. They claim to be the first place in Australia to stock new products, but coming from Europe we'd already tried most of the products they were plastering the 'NEW' stickers on. The prices are reasonable - similar to supermarket prices but with a better range than Coles or Woolworths would have over here, and cheaper than the hospital shop I frequent daily.
I like the way there's just ...
Advantages: Good network Disadvantages: Sometimes a bit confusing
will get fined if you don't (even if you plead ignorance)
You can buy local tickets at tobaccanists or newsagents if the queue at the ticket counter is too long - or if this is a bit intimidating, almost all Italian train stations have useful machines that sell tickets and give timetable information in a variety of languages (English included!).
If possible, ask specifically if you need to pay a supplement when you buy the ticket.. they might not tell you if you don't ask
Avoid station cafes... if at all possible and never use the toilets in the station at Lucca (just trust me on this!)
And... this is the crunch.. when trains arrive in stations in Italy, they often display where they have come from, rather than where they are going to. ALways check you have got on the right train - ask someone.. even if you can't speak Italian ...
Advantages: Relaxing, interesting holiday choice Disadvantages: Internet too expensive, some staff difficulties
intrepid pedestrians we took our chances and finally traversed the danger zone - you need a gold medal to actually go into town and get back to the ship.
On to Livorno, Italy, where many passengers went on the all-day Florence-Pisa trip but we opted for a five-hour tour into medieval Lucca and then a vineyard in Tuscany, with a long-distance peek at the Leaning Tower of Pisa from afar as we motored by. Our little town visit was enhanced as it was the third Sunday of the month and many of the narrow streets and piazzas were taken up with the Antiquity Fair. Great, wonderful, marvellous and any other adjectives you can think up. Then we also visited the cathedral which was the main focus of the visit to see famous paintings of Tintoretto and Ghirlandaio as well as some historic, religious artefacts.
On to the vineyard and the extremely ...
Writing321 28.10.2007 (05.03.2008)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: exceptional Review of Island Cruises
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