September 12 – Livorna

September 12, 2018 – Livorna, Pisa, and Lucca
The ship docked in Livorna at 7am. I met the driver, Gabriel at 8:15 on the pier. There were 6 other people in the group and by 8:30 we were on the road to Pisa. I booked this through ITALYTOURS.COM. It was billed as a semi-private tour with a English speaking driver. They stress that he is a driver and not a guide. However on the way to Pisa he gave us a history lesson about the Tuscany region. He put on some opera music song by Andrea Bocelli. We asked if Bocelli was from Tuscany. Gabriel then told us that he and Andrea Bocelli played music together in piano bars for 3 years in the mid 1980s. He showed us pictures of the two of them back then. He then sung a song for us. He was very good.
First stop was Pisa. We were given 1 1/2 hours to roam around. We walked 2 blocks and there ahead of us was the leaning tower. For me, it was more impressive than I thought it would be. It also leans more than I expected. I went into Baptistery. The pulpit and stained glass windows were very nice. It is known for its acoustics. A tour guide sang a little so her group (and the rest of us) could hear. I read that while the leaning tower leans 15 feet to the south, the Baptistery leans 6 ft to the north.
Funny thing overheard “Oh is this church Southern Baptist?”
It was a beautiful ride from Pisa to Luca through the Tuscany countryside. We got to Lucca at 11am and were given a map and 3 hours to spend. I wandered off on my own and spent the first hour seeing the churches. I found a restaurant and had a wonderful ravioli dish with meat sauce. Of course i had a glass of red wine to wash it down. After lunch I wandered around until 2pm and we headed back to the ship. There were many large art pieces set up around the city.
I played trivia at 6pm with 2 Australian women. We lost by 1 point. Dinner we very good. It was Prime Rib night! I played cards in the casino for a few hours before heading to bed.
Tomorrow we are in Civitavecchia. Most people will be going to Rome. I am going to stay on the ship but may wander into town.