Monday 10 May 2010

Day 37

Day 37. Thursday 6th May.

Pisa’s field of miracles was only a 20 min walk from our encampment, under a hideous thunderous underpass but what a sight greets you. The famous leaning tower, such an
appropriate symbol for Italy?
Totally unexpected were the Baptistry and the Cathedral. Both stunning, monochrome, confections in their own right and all set in an oasis of the greenest lawns you ever saw.
A guard with an incredible voice demonstrated the astonishing acoustics and echo in the Baptistery.

She sounded like whole choir singing counterpoint. Until the arrival of an English schoolteacher and her class, not to be swayed, she continued to lecture above the singing. The singer got louder but so did the teacher until the voice broke off, ripped into the English lady in vehement Italian, (ours isn’t good enough to work out what she was saying). The rest of the performance continued in hushed silence. Our feet almost left the ground the sound was so utterly transcended.
Nothing would persuade us the go up the tower but there is so much else to see it hardly mattered.





Explored the medieval city centre but on a cold wet day it all looked

very shabby and over lunch decided to head for Sicily and sunshine,

calling at Rome and Pompeii for stopovers on the way down.

3 comments:

  1. I can't believe how beautiful Italy is and the choices of beautiful gardens and amazing architecture. How lovely :) x

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  2. If it is any consolation at all, it is so cold here at the moment that Ellen and I lit a fire last night (10th) - in May for God's sake! A frost was forcast, though I was not out of my bed earlier enough to check.

    Took advantage of the Sarah Raven catalogue that arrived Chez 33a and Ellen and I have ordered some pelagoniums, dianthas and verbenas.

    Mail is all under control, but will do you a proper email with updates.

    Did cultural london at the weekend - Chris ofili (Tate) and Quilt exhibition at the V&A. OK - so it's not Pisa! But, hey, some of us have to work for a living!

    Lots of love

    Hilary

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  3. It is that cold Chez Ben and Fi's we've not only had our real fire on in the living room, but also our central heating on! Thats our heating been on continuosly for nearly 9 months for pity sake! I woke up to the news on the radio to hear that Scotland got snow last night in MAYYYYY. Some are saying its because of the volcanic ash and it has been quite grey now for some weeks with the sun struggling most days to show its face! But we are drier than you as needing to water the pots each night - sorry!

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