January 19: Pisa

Sorry it has been so long since my last post! After being sick for the past week, I was finally able to get out of bed and explore Italy more. Being sick while abroad was NOT fun and I am very glad it seems to be getting out of my system so I can go back to enjoying my time and visiting the amazing places in Italy. Today, I went to Pisa to see, you guessed it, the leaning tower of. The train ride from Florence to Pisa was only about 50 minutes. You have to walk through the town of Pisa itself to get to the tower and the cathedral, and the town itself was fairly quiet. Many of the stores and restaurants were closed and the streets were no where near as crowded as those of Florence.

Though shorter than I had pictured, the tower was a very cool sight to see. The more you look at it, the more you think, HOW is it standing if it is leaning so much! After countless efforts at pictures holding the tower, kicking the tower, and touching the top of the tower, we ventured into the cathedral, which had some of the most beautiful architecture. Everything was extremely and intricately detailed from the floor to the ceiling. Overall, seeing the leaning tower and the cathedral are staples of Italian vacationing and exciting to finally experience in person. All of the awesome pictures I took can be seen in the gallery tab.

We returned from Pisa and went to what may turn out to be my favorite restaurant in Florence, Trattoria Zaza. Their menu was practically a book! However, after a long day of walking through Pisa and finally beating this horrible cold, we settled on splitting bruschetta, rigatoni with tomato sauce and buffala mozzarella, and pizza with spicy peppers and sausage. And, of course, gelato. Tonight was really one of those nights I ATE my way through Italy. Good thing tomorrow is a trip to Bologna and EATLY (the DisneyWorld of Italian Food).

Wanderfully yours,

Sophia