Pisa and Lucca

Our last stop in Italy was a day docked in Livorno.  From here you can go to Florence, Pisa, Lucca and a few other places.  This trip we decided to spend a majority of our day in Pisa.  We got there with no issues and spent almost the entire day walking around the shops, playing on the lawn of the Leaning Tower of Pisa and sweating like crazy.  The good and bad about the heat just meant that we had to eat a whole lot of gelatto!

 After Pisa we got back on the train and headed to Lucca at the recommendation from one of our neighbors who lived in the area.  When we got off of the train we unfortunately turned the wrong way out of the train station and spent too much time roaming the wrong side of town.  When we finally found the walls of the city it was so late in the afternoon that all we had time for was a good lunch and a walk back to the train station.  It was a beautiful city and I hope to go back and spend much more time on our next trip.

This about sums it up - hot and tired.

Roma

We got off of the ship, found everybody and were about to find the subway when poor little Adelaide looked so miserable and started crying that I just couldn't take her sick little body into the heat of Rome.  So after some discussion we decided that Mom and I would stay behind with the girls while everyone else went into the city.  It was a bummer because I would have loved a family picture in front of the Colosseum, but we spent 4 days in Rome a few years ago and I am going to go out on a limb and say not that much has changed.

We made the right decision to stay back because the girls had a great time in the pool playing, A was able to get some rest and when the gang got back they said that it was miserably hot.  

All pics are courtesy of my sisters facebook page.

Perfect Italian Day

When deciding what to do while docking in Naples we had great choices and fortunately this isn't our first trip to Napoli so we had already seen the Capri, Pompeii, Sorrento, etc.  We went on a limb, did a ton of research and found the very best day of our trip, a private tour of Ravello, Positano and Amalfi.  This area of the world is not for those who get car sick easily as all you seem to do is go around, up and down mountains at crazy speeds.  I didn't fear for my life as I once did in Rome, but oh wow I wanted to pull over a few times.

After the hard drive we found ourselves spending moment after moment walking down alleys to find gelatto and art shops, listening to old Italian men argue in the streets and mostly just taking in every incredible view that you have seen on tv.

Mom doing a little watercolor shopping.

Way too much fun for the sick little one.

A little sampling of the Italian treats.

Sisterly love, my sweet girls.

Do you see how close that bus was to our van, AHHAHAHAHAA.

 Last but not least we had the most incredible lunch you can imagine.  They couoldn't bring the food fast enough as we loved every single bite!  We chose to let the chefs decide on our menu and it was a great decision.

View from the restaurant.

One more glass of wine! 

 Back to Naples and to the ship, see you later and thanks for the best day!