the sound of music.

DAY EIGHT
Today was great!  We woke up pretty early to get ready for our first train ride to Pisa!  Danielle and I played some Goo Goo Dolls to wake up the others... luckily they only complained that the music wasn't cheerful enough, not that it was 8:30 in the morning.  For the win!

Train #4 3/4 to Pisa! Arrivaderci!

We left exactly at 9:30 for the train station and stopped at a panetteria on the way to buy bread for sandwiches later.  Picnic on the Pisa grass?  Yeah, we're cute.  We even remembered to bring towels!  When we got to the station, we went straight to the ticket counter, but an attendant came up to us and told us to buy our tickets at a newspaper stand, where you can buy a train ticket at any time.  On a very IMPORTANT NOTE: when you go to Italy and buy a train ticket, you MUST get the ticket authorized at a little machine on the loading platform!  It punches a small hole and a time onto the ticket, which is important because an attendant will come by on the train and check your ticket.  If it is not authorized you have to pay a fifty euro fine, which would be awful considering our tickets cost just under eight euro... so make sure you definitely authorize your ticket!

1999

2013

The train ride was pretty fun because it was something we hadn't done yet and we were actually going to a different city for the day!  When we arrived at the station in Pisa we all had The Leaning Tower on the mind, and walked straight to it.  It was so weird when we turned the corner and it was just there... it just didn't look real!  Nothing in Italy looks real!  The Tower is so cool because when you look up into the sky, it appears to be falling in the direction of the moving clouds!  In 1997 when I first visited Pisa with my family The Tower was closed to the public because stabilization studies and the weight of the bells were causing it strain.  You can see that Daniel did a great job pushing it down, but Scott and I failed miserably at keeping it up... sorry Pisa?  Anyway, it reopened in 2008, but the cost to the top is fifteen euro... we chose to stick to the leaning pictures instead!  And we got plenty of them for sure!

Pisa is a sweet little town with a bit more diversity than Firenze and way less traffic.  It is a bit pricey, but if you bring your own lunch and sit out by the duomo in the soft lawn, it is awesome and nice relaxing thing to do!  Pisa definitely warrants a visit.  So... after finishing up with our pictures, we laid down our towels and pulled out the bread and salami.  We also had some leftover zitti and some cherries to go along with our beautiful spread!  What is weird about Italy is how people don't seem to care/be aware of PDA (public display of affection).  It is everywhere and anywhere, and bystanders don't seem to react at all to this display at all... it is normal.  In the United States that amount of love is not shared with the public...

After we finished, the sun felt so good that we took a nap in the super soft grass.  It was AMAZING and such a chill way to spend our day.  Tarah put on some hipster music and we became one with the music.  I even stood up at one point and twirled in the field, inspired by the Sound of Music and how perfect the day felt!  Un buon giorno!   

When we finally had to leave around, after forcing ourselves to turn off the music, put our shoes back on, and walk back to the Pisa Train Station. I know, I know... it is a hard life, being forced to return to Firenze after a perfect day in Pisa, but we got through it.  We felt the wave of tired as we sat on the train back home, but when we decided to go out to dinner, we all perked up a bit.  How does pear and asiago cheese ravioli with asparagus in a delicious cream sauce sound?  Amazing... well that's what we had.  All five of us ordered the SAME thing!  The waiter at the Trattoria Four Leoni was pretty amused and continued to watch us and laugh throughout the meal.  He caught me at every awkward bite and made fun of every "Italish" attempt I had.  The meal though, was awesome!  The portion size wasn't big, but then again, it was supposed to be a primi piati, so of course we had to get a small gelato to rap it up.  Worth it! 

Today was so much fun!  Sometimes the simple things in life can turn out to be some of the best memories you'll have!  Today was simple, but perfect, and I loved every second of it.  No deltas for me, just smiles.