Checking things off the list.

The last time I was in Pisa, it was in August '07 -- and it was also at 3AM. I was with my sister and we had taken the train (which was, of course, late*) in to catch our flight to Sardegna. It was dark, and there were no taxis, and we had no idea where the airport was. Two backpacking hobo's with ratty camping equipment and a drunk Pisan bum later we had walking directions from the station to the Airport. With luggage. It was one of the more memorable eves of my life but not for what I had expected. On the train in, visions had danced in my head of a sunrise-taxi-drive-by of the leaning tower of Pisa and the Piazza dei Miracoli, bottle of white wine in hand, wooed by some guy playing suitable background music on a violin. But indeed no. I found myself with my sister and the two hobo's walking along a broken sidewalk at 3AM, weighed down with too-stuffed backpackes along a major highway -- to reach the airport by foot -- and the only background music the sound of the occaisional car whizzing by. Ohhh, Pisa.

So to make up for it, since Jac & I were in Tuscany for the weekend with friends, I went back to Pisa -- this time in broad daylight on a sunny late spring day to lounge for several lovely hours on the lush laws of Piazza dei Miracoli.

Soon as I saw the tower I was overwhelmed with a desire to send some sort of advisory message to America, something along the lines of: !!! The hype is TRUE!!! It really DOES look like it's about to fall over.

Nothing could have prepared me for the hoards of americans taking pictures in front, pretending to "lean" in all sorts of awkward/twisty ways/directions.



Kind of made of think of 2003 in front of the Torre Eiffel with Corinne, taking turns making that illusory pic in which one looks as though they are holding up the tower in the palms of their hands. Or the classic "make a Gladiator muscle" in front of the Colosseum.

In all, I had a really good weekend -- saw lots of new places (Lucca, Viareggio, Pisa, Orvieto) -- and it was much needed. Summer is a'coming. Life gets interesting-er. Stay posted.

*From herein when I mention taking trains in italy, just assume it was late -- unless I miraculously report otherwise.