I wanted to visit Florence as David and the Ponte Vecchio were on my bucket list. I soon discovered they were on thousands of other people’s must-see lists too!

The end of July-early August is guaranteed to be hot but this was next level! Daytime maximums hovered around 38 and the high humidity made it feel like 40+! Thankfully my hotel room had icy cold AC. This made leaving each day hard but motivated me during the 2km walk back along the Arno River each day, as I knew a good night’s rest in the cool awaited me.

The heat had no impact on the beauty of Florence and it’s many bridges. In fact, I think the mirage-like shimmer coming off the river added to it.

I booked a guided tour of the Accademia Gallery to see David and was in awe. Over 500 years ago Michealangelo, at the age of 26, carved a exquisite piece of pure white marble to create a masterpiece that is still admired by thousands daily. It’s easy to see why. David is absolutely beautiful! The detail is remarkable and although his feet and hands are out of proportion, this was not a mistake, the artist knew he would be viewed from below and afar. Wow! What else is there to say?

After admiring David and the other paintings and sculptures at the Gallery I stopped at the Florence Duomo with its iconic dome. I liked the visual appeal of the variegated marble panel design and it reminded me of a pattern you might find on a fancy wedding cake.

For a change of pace at the end of my stay I decided to take a fresh pasta making course. We made two types of ravioli, each with different fillings, and tagliatelle. The restaurant cooked these with complimentary sauces and we enjoyed all three for lunch with wine, dessert and of course moka cafe. This was a very fun afternoon in the kitchen with like-minded travellers.

Pisa

Catching the train to Lucca meant going via Pisa. I couldn’t resist a transit stop to see the famous leaning tower.

I used the ‘left luggage’ service at the train station to stow my bag and walked to the tower. The weather was still very hot but the stream of people flowing between the station and the tower proved it was no deterrent. I wondered how many actually stayed in Pisa or did what I was doing and just stopped to see the tower on their way elsewhere.

Lucca

Lucca came highly recommend from a number of sources, so I decided to see it for myself. It is a very pretty walled town that is looked after and it’s built heritage is well preserved.

I hired a bike and rode around the top of the walls twice, as it only took 20 minutes. Then I rode around the narrow streets inside the walls, stopping to have a look at some many cathedrals and Lucca Biennale artworks made mostly from paper.

Lucca is the birthplace of Giacomo Puccini and in his honour there is an concert held every evening in the San Giovanni church. My B&B was just outside the city walls so my host lent me a bike to ride to the concert. It was a completely different and wonderful experience riding her vintage bike along the top of the walls in the evening. Without the bike hire shop’s advertising across the front basket, I was suddenly just like any of the locals using the wide traffic-free space for recreation.

The Puccini concert consisted of a pianist, a tenor and a soprano. The performance and its acoustics were outstanding. The program consisted of songs from various Puccini operas including La Boheme, Tosca, Madame Butterfly and Turandot. The encore was Verdi’s La Traviata.

With Nessum Dorma ringing in my ears I rode my bike to the Piazza Anfiteatro to get dinner. This spectacular round piazza is built around an old Roman amphitheatre. I took a short video to share it’s vibrant atmosphere:

I couldn’t stay in Tuscany without sampling some if its famous wines, so I booked a half day tour to Montecarlo. We visited one organic/bio winery run by a very hard working and passionate woman. We sampled nine wines and, in true italian fashion, each was served with an complimentary plate of food. It was the longest and most filling tasting I’d had the entire trip! Afterwards we walked around the small town of Montecarlo and admired the panoramic views of the Tuscan countryside.

Lucca was the ideal spot to relax and enjoy the easy pace of Italian life before I arrived in the nation’s capital – Rome!