(Day 8: La Spezia/Pisa) Our Trip Of A Lifetime: Cruising the Mediterranean

Another Mediterranean twilight becomes a great sunrise... and another Italian port to explore!

Our Disney Magic slips past the low, outer harbor wall and its small lighthouse.

As we continue to our anchorage, we see a couple of small fishing boats racing out to claim their favorite spots.

The dawn brightens, revealing high, rolling hills and several little villages along this Tuscan coastline.

The rising sun slowly lights up the sleepy inner harbor of La Spezia, Italy.

Today it will be our gateway to Pisa and its famous Leaning Tower!

We ate breakfast early at the "Topsider" because we had an 8:15 a.m. kickoff for our Pisa excursion.

As we anchor far out in this too-shallow port, the first of many "tenders" comes out to greet, and ferry, us Magic passengers onto shore for our excursions.

As quick as one ferry fills up and leaves, another is waiting to pull along side and pick up the next boatload... a very efficient system!

You can see how huge the Magic is compared to the not-so-small tender boats.

Our tender boat took us in to the La Spezia dock on a smooth and enjoyable 10-minute shuttle.

Along the way, we see what looks like an early, medieval-era, defensive wall or fortress for protecting the inner port.

Now for protection, some of Italy's finest Navy ships are docked in this port... probably a strategic location along the Mediterranean coastline.

And then some of the local, recreational sailors were beginning to leave the harbor for a gorgeous day of sailing.

There were some pretty nice (and expensive looking) sailboats and yachts docked here.

Once the tender dropped us off, we met our Italian tour guide for the day... Ella!
And guess what... she's shorter yet than all of the other guides so far!

We load up our tour bus and head through La Spezia, on our way toward Pisa!

Here in La Spezia, we see another of the classy Jolly Hotels!
(Remember... we had a fancy lunch in a Jolly Hotel in Rome just yesterday on "Day Seven")

Well-manicured and unique trees lined our exit from the port of La Spezia area.

Along our 1 1/2 hour bus ride to Pisa, we spotted dozens of quaint hilltop villages like this one, perched high above... and oblivious to... the roadway.

A scenic river running from the mountains to the Mediterranean.

We drive closer to, and along the northern end of, the impressive Apennine Mountain range...
(these mountains stretch all the way from the Alps up north, to down past Rome, and clear to the "boot" tip of Italy in the south).

Overlooking these terracotta-roofed Italian homes, are some of the highest peaks of the Apennines range.

A small church steeple with its cross rises above the homes of a local village as we speed by.

Here is Ella... having some initial difficulties with our "whisper" headphones system.

(These "whispers" are the earpieces we all wear as we hike around... they are preset to a certain frequency...

that way the tour guide can talk to everyone in the group without shouting and disrupting other tour groups or people nearby.)

Here's Kathy soaking up the sunshine while we all wait at the "potty break" gathering spot.

It's also where they parked the bus... we are on foot the rest of the way.

Our first look at a map of Pisa (the birthplace of the famous astronomer, inventor, and physicist Galileo).

We are still a good half mile from the plaza we need to see.

Although there wasn't a cloud in the sky, I bought a colorful umbrella for 6 Euros from a street vendor (probably an illegal one)... the umbrella has cool pictures of the Leaning Tower, the Duomo, and Florence on it.

There were several Nigerian street peddlers... more than likely the illegal vendors... with their questionable goods all spread out on blankets on the ground and on the parking lot.

We constantly need to watch out for tour buses and high speed transit trains like this electric train zipping by.

(Rome doesn't corner the market on all the crazy Italian drivers... there are a few up here near Pisa, too!)

Ella holds the "Mickey" sign high overhead so we can keep an eye on her as she leads the way!
(At least she didn't say "andiamo!" all the time.)

We are getting oh so close now! The sign points to the "piazza dei miracoli" (= plaza of miracles).

The local policia were scattered all about, watching the hundreds of tourists approaching the walled portion of Pisa's town center.

Here's one looking spiffy in his Armani, Gucci, and Bruno Magli designer uniforms... (just guessing on the Italian designers, eh, but they did look sharp)!

There were dozens of vendor stands lined up along the outer wall of the piazza in the town center... most selling souvenirs for the tourists as they came and went.

Some of those "souvenirs" were quite risque'...
(eg. BBQ-style chef aprons with life-size, naked torsos showing either "boobs" (if for a girl cook) or a non-erect "penis" (if for a guy cook) photo-printed on the front of it...

and then there were small, plaster Leaning Tower paperweights that drooped over (resembling a non-erect penis)... pretty risque' for out-in-public displays!)

But once you do get past the souvenir vendors, you enter the wall's gateway... and...

you spot the actual "Leaning Tower of Pisa" for the first time!

Absolutely Amazing!

Kathy was totally thrilled... me too!
(I had been here once before by myself 10 years ago while on a military "thing" with the Army.)

The large Duomo (cathedral), the Baptistery, the medieval cemetery (Campo Santo), and of course The Leaning Tower... all make this a spectacular piazza of miracles to behold!

These buildings are enormous, highly detailed, and old... being built nearly 1,000 years ago!

Here is the Duomo (cathedral) on the left and the Tower on the right.

Behind this crowd, you can see a large, market clock and a small museum that overlooks a row of vendor shops inside the piazza walls... (they had a bit more "tasteful" wares for sale here).

This is a detail of the statue sitting atop a water fountain (shown below) near The Tower.

This is where we met our other guide... Laura (she pronounced it "l-ow-ra")... and she gave us the Pisa-specific portion of our tour.

We began by walking past the huge Duomo and beyond the Tower... to view the piazza from another angle.

She pointed to a carved inscription (a frieze), near the Tower's entrance door, that states the Tower was begun in 1173 a.d. (...it was not completed until 1350 a.d.)!

Look at the stone carving details at the base of the Tower... and how much it leans... astounding!
(It now leans a full 17.5 feet off of its vertical center line !!!)

A statue of Romulus and Remus (the mythical founders of Rome) suckling from a she-wolf, who is said to have raised them after finding them abandoned.

This long yellow/brown building is the outer face of the structure that encloses a cemetery inside its courtyard spaces... this is part of Campo Santo (= field of saints).

I had seen Campo Santo my last time here... and it was awe-inspiring to see the 1,000-year old tombs, markers, and burial sites. But, alas... we had no time available to see it on this trip.

We saw the Tower from all sides and took many pictures. Most of the pictures were serious...

BUT... everybody has to take a few of the "silly" pictures too !

Here's me "holding" the Tower like it was a salt shaker.

Here's me "pushing the Tower over" with just one finger!

And here's Kathy saving the day by "holding up the Tower" before it fell over!

Here Laura gives us a few details about the history of the piazza.

The ornate backside of the immense Duomo (cathedral) stands under the shadow of the Tower.

The Duomo was begun in 1063 a.d.!

The massive granite and marble walls of the Duomo illustrate an interesting aspect of the Roman/Italian stone craftsmen of the great building era... their salvaging and recycling!

If you look closely about halfway up on the left edge of this wall, you will see a reused block salvaged from some Roman temple that has the name "Caesar" carved in it...

and then, in the lower center of this picture, (about a foot above that guy's head) you can see a carved flower in another recycled stone block.

The stonemasons often used stones from dismantled buildings in other parts of Pisa or other cities nearby.

That also helps explain the variety of colors, rock patterns, and the occasional "random" or even "upside down" carving or inscription found on these buildings!

This is St. John's Baptistery (the Baptistery di San Giovanni) ... where religious services were held for those families with un-baptised children.

Children were not allowed into the Duomo, even with their families, until they were officially baptised!

Going to the Baptistery, we walk past this entrance to the Campo Santo cemetery building... there is actually earth brought from the Holy Land in part of the cemetery!

This is a detail of the carvings above the entrance door to Campo Santo... a grouping of Saints.

An idea of the crowds that visit the piazza every day. We are facing toward the old, large market clock... in the background, across the plaza.

A frontal, zoomed-in view of the old, market clock.

To our left are the bronze doors and colorful mosaics at the front entrances to the Duomo.

A detail of the colorful mosaic high above a Duomo entrance door.

The mosaic sits well protected in a decorative archway above the ornately casted bronze doors.

Another gorgeous mosaic above another entrance door.

This is the upper structure that towers high above those mosaic-laden entrance archways.

A saint and a grotesque greyhound dog statue adorn the corners of one roof level of the Duomo.

Again... a stone is "recycled" from another building, time, and place.

This time a stone with a large Maltese Cross carved in it, works well as a walkway paver between the Duomo and Baptistery buildings.

The Duomo was full, so Laura took us to see the Baptistery first... here again, all visiting women were supposed to have their shoulders, legs, and head hair covered before entering (but it was loosely, if at all enforced).

A view of the protective wall enclosing the piazza and wrapping around behind the Baptistery and Campo Santo cemetery.

Intricate stone carvings near the Baptistery entrance door.

Some gruesome gargoyle-style carvings on pillars inside the Baptistery.

A pure, unpainted, dome inner ceiling high above in the Baptistery chambers.

A bronze statue stands beside an altar and two stained glass religious window scenes.

The altar front was carved wood and marble. Nicola Pisano, in 1260 a.d., designed and carved this large pulpit in the Baptistery.

Inside the Baptistery, I'm holding our tour ticket stub (in Italian) showing the Baptistery and Duomo tour special.

Every hour a volunteer worker comes in to sing and demonstrate the acoustic, reverberating qualities of the main Baptistery ceremonial service chamber.

Two more gorgeous stained glass windows bring sunlight from outside.

An ornate candle, pedestal, and small altar sits on an inlaid tile floor.

Another majestic stained-glass window in the main Baptistery chamber... one of the three wisemen/kings bringing gifts to baby Jesus, I presume.

This is a marble sarcophagus embedded into the floor of the Baptistery... if I could read Latin, I could tell you who this crypt belongs to... but, sorry... I can't.
.
As we leave the Baptistery, we see the huge front entrances to the ornate Duomo.

These figures graced the column tops near the large, bronze Duomo doors.

There were several examples of somewhat risque symbolic statuary or carvings adorning many of the cathedrals, duomos, and baptisteries we saw in Italy.

We entered into the great hall of the Duomo... following the ever-present Disney "Mickey ears" sign being held by our guide Ella.

A marvelously detailed statue greeted us as we entered the great hall.

A huge mural painting, depicting angels, bystanders, and a Pope... who is possibly sitting in judgment of the two women... takes up most of the wall below a stained glass window.

A simple crucifix framed by rich granites and polished marble columns.

The gold leaf or guilding on the whole ceiling of this great hall was spectacular... this photo does not do it justice!

Tall, graceful granite columns and archways support the immense dome of the duomo interior.

More huge paintings of various Angels, Popes, Apostles, Miracles, Saints, and Sinners... topped by gorgeous stained glass windows.

A huge, bronze chandelier with cherubs all around, hung above the main corridor.

An amazing ceiling painting inside the dome of the Duomo... these frescoes were added after a fire in the interior in 1595 a.d.!

This immense, exquisitely carved, marble pulpit was done by Giovanni Pisano around 1302 a.d. (...he was the son of Nicola Pisano, who had carved the large pulpit we saw in the Baptistery next door).

More details of the great carvings surrounding this huge marble pulpit... the figures represent the Arts and Virtues.

A wing off the main hall of the Duomo... the huge bronze chandelier gives a little light to the area, but most areas rely on incoming sunlight.

A large crucifix and smaller, near-life size saint statues are silhouetted above the altar wing.

It is absolutely spectacular to take this all in!

Kathy was amazed at the dazzling altars and their meticulous craftsmanship throughout.

Another unbelievably awesome view of a wing off of the great hall.

I believe the glass box... (in the lower-center of the picture)... contains the sacred bones of St. Catherine (of Siena, I think).

Fabulous carvings in fine marble were everywhere we looked.

Magnificent renaissance and medieval paintings adorned the walls all along the great hall.

Every wall had massive paintings or carvings... or both.

More paintings and stained glass windows in the Duomo.

A magnificent carved marble relief surrounded by colored marbles and granite.

The extreme leaning of the Tower is very obvious from this viewpoint.

Across the piazza courtyard lawn, the Baptistery stands bright white against the darker, aged outer protective city wall.

Here Kathy begins her "power-shopping" since we only have about 15 minutes for souvenir buying.

She is looking for (and finds) an Italian leather purse for our daughter and a little girl's bag or purse for one of our granddaughters.

(That was our main complaint on several of the cruise excursions:

Not enough time allowed for souvenir purchases... or to enjoy a gelato... or to do something "local" for a few minutes!)

Kathy stopped along our walking route back to the bus, to take this colorful picture of an authentic Italian flower shoppe and outdoor seed stand.

Next to the flower shoppe... this old building is very interesting with its weathered doors, broken stucco, exposed rocks, and wrought-iron gratings.

A naturally-weathered wooden door of an unknown Pisa apartment resident.

They are everywhere!

This is a Pisa people-mover... a little trolley-tram.
Now, I'm not sure, but... I think maybe it just might be sponsored by a local McDonald's.

As we leave Pisa, we break out into the Italian countryside... where the crops are unknown, but tall and bright green.

Heading back to La Spezia on their highways, we see an exit sign for Firenze (which is Italian for Florence)!

Many different road signs along the way... and they're all in Italian... imagine that!

Terracotta tiles are the roofing of choice in most of the villages we drive past.

Some of the high Apennine Mountain peaks.

Note the large white areas near the tops... these are quarry sites of the marble used for many of the Italian buildings and sculptures.

It is said that this is the region from which Michelangelo got his marble blocks to carve many of his masterpieces.

Very large blocks of quarried marble await shipment near the base of the mountain range.

Another hilltop village... carved out of, and built into, the low mountain peak.

A hilltop village closer to the highway, shows just how crammed in the houses are to each other.

No wonder Italians are so close-knit and bonded with their relatives, their neighbors, and fellow villagers... there's no way to avoid being "close".

An ancient bridge spans a wide, shallow river upstream near La Spezia.

An exit to the industrial portions of the La Spezia seaport.

More terracotta roof tiles, some unreadable street signs, and a teeny Italian car as we exit to go down to the dock. (I think I tilted the camera a bit too much here.)

Well, two tilted pictures in a row... I must have picked up a "Leaning Tower" bug of some kind back in Pisa!

A typical La Spezia street in the afternoon.

Our bus dropped us off near the dock and we still had a couple hours before we had to ferry out to the Magic.

Kathy wanted to see if any shops were open in the town center a few blocks away.

As we walked near the dock, Kathy volunteered to take a picture for a young family from our ship. (I don't remember where they were from... but, probably Lawton/Ft. Sill, Oklahoma.)

Kathy takes a relaxed "world traveler" pose on one of their unique, concrete benches along the dock's long paved walkway.

We walked across the street to a small, well-manicured, public park in La Spezia.

An Italian goddess statue, made from fine marble, decorates the park.

Also "decorating" the park... was this hot-blooded, young Italian couple who were making out on one of the slightly-secluded park benches.

All of the shops were closed along this block... can you guess what kind of shop a "farmacia" is?
(No, it's not a farm implement store... it's a pharmacy, duh).

A faux-mosaic design painted on the ceiling near the farmacia.

Where is everybody? The shops are closed and no one is around.

A look back at the farmacia "strip mall" row of closed stores... from the small park again.

Another gorgeous, sunny day today... a great day for a lazy stroll through the park!

Kathy is off trying to find a souvenir "treasure" to take back with her.

What did she find?

A very exotic "Italian pigeon feather" for the band of her sunhat.

At one corner of the small park, there were several small rides for little kids... and a small carousel, too. (Everything was closed up though.)

This "Far West" coin-operated ride looked fun, but a bit out of place here in Italy... (hey, maybe it was used in the old Clint Eastwood-style "spaghetti westerns" that were filmed in Italy back in the 1970's.)

A look down a La Spezia deserted, palm-tree-lined boulevard.

Well, it's getting late, so Kathy decides to go back to the only vendor still open on the dock and buy her souvenirs.

I chilled out on a bench with a gelato (the tasty Italian version of ice cream) while I waited.

Kathy bought the usual postcards, a 'fridge magnet, and also 2 "dew rags" with skulls and crossbones on them... for us to wear at the costume, dress-up dinner for "Pirates In The Caribbean Night" back on the Magic tonight.

Here's a local Italian girl, in a short black dress and high heels, walking along the harbor dock.

(I just wonder what she's "trolling" for... I didn't see the Italian Navy sailors on the dock yet.)

A cutesy little tram/people mover driving up and down the long dock... a "Dutto Trains" engine.

Now, that's one heck of an anchor for those little motorboats!

They might need to "update" their port protection equipment a little bit.

While waiting for the next ferry back to the boat, Kathy struck up a conversation with an Australian couple and was showing them our pirate "dew rags" for the dinner tonight.

The Australian lady then pulls out a dew rag from her shopping bag with a single jolly roger skull & crossbones on it.

Her husband tries it on, while I try on our new pirate print dew rag.

Kathy and his wife both laughed at us and wanted our picture together...

well, this is it! We both gave our best growling "Arrrgggh !" for the picture.

Sad to say, but if this was a battle of the big pirate bellies...
I sadly admit that I won that contest... (that's me on the left).

A fleet of little Sunfish sailboats crossed our ferry boat's path as a sailing school for youngsters was out in strength... learning the basics of sailing in the protected harbor.

Our home-away-from-home... the Disney Magic... waits majestically out in the deeper harbor for our ferry boat to bring us back.

An empty ferry boat returns to the La Spezia dock for another load of tired, but happy, Magic passengers.

A closer look at the Italian Navy ships at anchor in the harbor.

As our ferry slid along side to offload us, I noticed a giant-sized Goofy hanging by a rope and "painting" the design on the stern of the boat... very clever!

The greeting (and security) party waits to welcome us back on board.

Back on the Magic, we hike down the long, plush hallway to our cabin to change clothes for dinner.

Some families put cool door coverings on their cabin doors to make them unique... like this pirate-themed display.

We grabbed a little snack to hold us till dinner and watched the kids playing on the waterslide and in the kiddie pool.

"Goofy's Galley" had some great fruit plates and specialty, healthy sandwiches all day long.

We hiked up to the top deck to watch us pull out of port.

Another ferry boat returns with the last of the passengers, shortly before the last "all aboard" was sounded.

A "local" sailing couple, heading back to port, gracefully cruises by... far down below our top deck level of the Magic.

The Magic crew raises anchors and we slowly cruise back out to sea.

On to our next adventure, for tomorrow finds us in another port!

On one of the upper decks, the great Topsider buffet restaurant is inside the glass window area.

We changed into our "pirate" outfits and headed for dinner at Lumieres.

Kathy dressed as a sexy wench in her white peasant blouse, a black ruffly skirt, and wearing her pirate dew rag.

I wore blue jeans rolled up to the knee, my Pirates of Sorrento shirt, my now-infamous pirate dew rag, and a sash for a belt.

Nita and Ron (from Bristol, England) were having a fun time at dinner... Nita wore her pirate sailor blouse and a pirate dew rag, too.

Bob and Laura (from Connecticut) tied on their dew rags for a splash of pirate colors.

A really happy couple... Pat and Andy (from Philadelphia).

She wore a pirate scarf and he is hiding his pirate colors for later.

Kathy and I (from central Illinois) posed with piratey grins as Dogan, the head maitre'd at our restaurant, sneaks up behind us.

In the middle of dinner, a line of crew staff paraded through our huge dining room... waving flags, singing, and trying a conga line dance.

Pirates of the Caribbean dance night was about to begin upstairs... on deck by the big silver screen ..

Our pirates of all ages were dancing and having a great time up on deck.

Captain Hook's band of pirates sings and dances on stage and on the big, big screen.

More singing and dancing!

Kathy, in her saucy wench outfit, starting to really "get down" with this pirate dance party stuff.

Captain Hook's head girl pirate agitates the crowd with her song and dances.

And now Stitch comes to join the bad pirates in the song and dance show.

A lively bad pirate ho-down to get ready for Hook's arrival soon.

And here he comes... the bad Captain Hook himself... look out Peter Pan!

Hey, here comes Mickey Mouse swinging in to the rescue!

Mickey came from way up there to a thunderous cheer of support from the good-pirates.

After Mickey chased Captain Hook and his band away... there were massive, colorful fireworks!
(Disney is the only cruise line allowed to fire so many fireworks during their cruises!)

The dance party continues as an old, good-guy pirate and his saucy wench smile for the camera.

Line dancing... pirate style!

This little guy is a bit off on rhythm and direction of the song (and the others dancing)... but he is sure having fun!

After the Deck Party, it's time to slow down and enjoy the pirate's attitude.

Kathy claps at the end of the very energetic and entertaining stage show.

A dessert buffet table was available after the Deck Party... it was great!

We went back out to the lounge chairs and ate desserts while watching the original Pirates of the Caribbean movie on the giant movie screen.

After a very long, full, and exciting day in Pisa and La Spezia... we finally got to bed around 1:30 a.m., (but we do plan to sleep in a little in the morning)!

Komang surprised us again with another towel "sculpture"... a baby elephant this time... surrounded by chocolate pirate coins.

Our daily "Navigator" for tomorrow shows us in port at Ajaccio, the capital of the French island of Corsica... the birthplace of Napoleon Bonaparte.

The end of another amazing day!!!