Arriving early in the day we were able to see all of the highlights within the old walled city in Lucca and had a lovely dinner at Madame Butterfly, which we chose because it was packed, so clearly a favourite. It was lovely to wander the streets, coming upon different interesting buildings as we entered a new piazza. One corner of the area was converted to a large bandstand for the many well known artists appearing as part of an annual music festival, with performances throughout July and August. You may want to check out the dates, either to purchase a ticket, listen to the music outside the bandstand for free (find a table early) or avoid the area at that time.
Planning a day trip to PISA, we took a bus from the front of our hotel, getting off at the tower square - pretty much door to door service. After seeing this iconic image in so many movies and photographs it was none the less impressive despite the familiarity. The tower was magnificent, as were the surrounding buildings and cathedral. After visiting this area for a while and watching the many tourists taking pictures “holding up the tower”, we climbed up to the top of the wall surrounding this section of the city and commenced what was a fairly long walk, with lovely views. Climbing back down near the city centre we took a leisurely stroll towards the train station, stopping in several piazzas for the architecture and taking a break for lunch along the way on a patio at one of the many pizzerias. Then we hopped on the train back to Lucca, for a rest and another wonderful meal in the old city. Quite a lovely 2 days.
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