Spending a day under the Tuscan Sun!

The wall surrounding Lucca

After a good night's sleep, we got up and ate breakfast before heading to Lucca. Lucca is a  wonderful town which is one of  a few cities in Italy that is surrounded  completely by a stone wall. The streets are narrow and like a maze. Our guide Claudia encouraged us to stay on the main streets as it is easy to get lost. The main form of transportation  in Lucca is by bicycles. You definitely need to watch out or you can get run down! We spent two hours walking the streets, going to shops, seeing the duomo of Luca in the town square, admiring the scenery, and enjoying more gelato. After a nice morning in Lucca we loaded the bus and headed to a traditional Tuscany winery named Fattoria Il Poggio.

At the Farmhouse Winery

Upon arrival, we were greeted by a very enthusiastic tour guide named Helen. She described to us the process of making the wines and then took us up into the vineyard to show us the grapes and olive trees. We toured the olive press and learned about olive oil and how it is made. Helen led us to an elegant outdoor seating area where we were treated to a traditional Tuscan lunch. We were served bruschetta, olives, pasta, salami, and fresh bread. We tasted a number of different wines as well as their olive oil and balsamic vinegar. We finished up at the winery and discovered that our bus had an oil leak. After waiting for over an hour, our new bus arrived and we were finally on our way to Pisa. In Pisa, we all quickly got our pictures taken at the Leaning Tower of Pisa and headed back to the bus. It was another HOT day so the air conditioning on the bus was a welcomed relief. We then headed to Montecatini Alto. Also known as "the Old Town". It is located high in the hills and overlooks the city. The bus ride there was very curvy and steep. When we arrived, we were surrounded by gorgeous views of the valleys and rolling hills of Tuscany! We captured some great photos and headed back to the hotel for dinner. It was a long, hot, fun-filled, adventurous day. A good night sleep is ahead and then we are up early tomorrow and off to Rome.
-written by Anna Lundquist and Emmaline Crawford