Sept 18 - Lucca

 Sept 18 - Lucca

Nothing actually planned today apart from a wander around town to see what’s open or happing. 


Our first stop was the city’s main square, the picturesque Piazza Anfiteatro.  We’ve decided that this place should really be known as the ‘round square’ as it’s actually elliptical. Built on the remains of a 2nd century Roman amphitheatre it’s a lovely place to stop in the sun with a coffee or an aperitif! 🥂


On our walk we discover that Lucca is known for being the ‘City with 100 churches’ and, although I’m not sure that that’s the correct number, they certainly have their fair share of them.  We did stop and check-out one though that looked interesting on our way past, and it turned out to be a recently renovated/ restored Romanian Orthodox Church!  

There’s not been too many places on this trip where we’ve not found a tower, spire, steeple, or bridge to climb, and this morning we found two.  The first, the Torre Guinigi, dates from the 1300’s and is a typical example of local Romanesque architecture.  At 45 meters tall it’s known for the tall trees and garden growing on the roof.  Apparently the family kitchen was on the floor below and this served as a kitchen garden.

The second, the Torre delle Oro, or Clock Tower and, at 50 metres, the tallest tower in Lucca.  Apparently there have been others that were taller but, during a purge to reduce the number of towers this survived because of its function as a clock tower.  There’s some lovely views from the top, you can see all the way to the hills, but you also get a great front view of the Guinigi Tower. 

Lastly we paid a visit to one of the city’s two Botanicals Gardens.  I must admit that i think it’s nice having a bit of of a walk through some decent gardens, however, on this trip we’ve had some real duds!  Today’s wasn’t as bad as those at Padua, but really there wasn’t a lot in it. I know it’s not the best time of year but I struggled to get any colour at all. 



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