farmer zoe

so... my last few days on the farm were incredible. a few days before i left, not knowing whether i would have another day off, they told me that the last day and a half i would have free to go to the sea... or Pisa ... or wherever i would like. so after working a saturday morning, i asked marina if i could take a bike to the sea. but the tires were flat, so she offered to drive me. (which ended up being fantastic.) we got to il mare and she said " now which way do we walk?" ... so we walked for about an hour on the beach. not saying much, but picking up stones together and laughing about the situation. it was a grey overcast day with dramatic clouds and the sea looked greyish green. it was so beautiful.

after the sea, she drove me to bibbona vecchia- old bibbona, and we walked around the town. it was such a beautiful little village on a steep hill. at the top was a "tipico" \ typical tuscan panorama. so... it was gorgeous.

she is so sweet.

the next day, georgio drove me to the train station really early. i was headed for Pisa and Lucca. it was a sunday, and the office at the station was closed. i didn't have the right change, and giorgio takes off smiling to find something nearby and open that could make some change for me. he is absolutely hilarious... so after getting on the wrong train, getting to pisa eventually and discovering there are no trains to lucca on sundays- i found a bus station.

luca is spectacular. it is a walled city about a 45 minute bus ride from Pisa. i spent most of the day wandering around disregarding my map and finding churches. it was beautiful and perfect for getting lost.

after walking around the wall and checking out Cathedral of San Martino, i headed back to Pisa. the piazza with the leaning tower and duomo and bascillica are fabulous. i took some pictures and headed back to the crowded streets where all the shops and cafes that had been closed around midday were hopping. there was some kind of christmas fair going on and toms of people out.

i had some incredible chocolate and coconut gelato and got back on the train for cecina- bibbona.

THEN ... the next day after sweet goodbyes, i headed to milano to meet up with tony and marlee for an italian thanksgiving!