Day 24 June 15, 2023 (Lucca)
Today was a perfect day for walking around Lucca! After dealing with rain the past two days, it was a nice change, though as I said before, we can’t complain as we have had great weather throughout the trip so far. We headed out about 10:30 and walked all over, going in and out of the different little streets just to see what was out there. John had been wanting to climb the bell tower (232 steps), so we did that and got a great view overlooking the city within the walls. You can see the Amphitheater, San Frediano church and San Franceso square. There was some other information advertised with other things to do within the city and one was the gardens (which we caught a glimpse of on our first day while walking the wall) and it also included an exhibition of medical-surgical instruments from the end of the 19th century.
The Palazzo Pfanner was constructed in 1660. Additions were made in 1686, which include the grand staircase and at the beginning of the 18th century the garden was upgraded to what it is now. The garden contains ornamental flowers, forest plants and earthenware pots of lemons that accompany the 18th century statues depicting the deities of Greek Olympus and the Four Seasons. The garden is clearly visible from the city walls and the grand staircase. The garden was used as a location for the film Portrait of a Lady (Nicole Kidman/John Malkovich). You can go inside and see the frescoes, as well as a bedroom and a historic kitchen. My favorite part was the medical-surgical instrument exhibition!!! Everything was in glass cases so trying to get pictures was useless. The instruments belonging to Pietro Pfanner, who was a distinguished doctor. Let’s just say, I’m glad things have progressed because some of those instruments were barbaric looking!
We strolled a little afterwards and stopped for a bite to eat. We found a little side street café and had bread with a tomatoes/cheese/olive oil tapenade and then some burrata cheese stuffed ravioli with meat sauce. We walked around some more; John found a belt, we found a useful souvenir to remember our time in Lucca, and then we headed towards the wall to walk around it. We headed back to the room, did a few things, changed, and headed out again for a happy hour drink before dinner. Found a cute little bistro, had a glass of wine and then back to our favorite place for dinner. Tonight, we shared Spaghetti Cacio e Pepe (my fav! spaghetti with cheese and pepper) and a spit roasted pork shank with vegetables. No dolci tonight, we were full, but John did finish off with a grappa, which is too strong for me, so I had an extra glass of wine 😊 Tomorrow we head to Florence for the next adventure.
Miles walked – 6.19 Ciao!
