Tuscany

Swimming in the Tyrennian Sea! What an experience.

Our Italian hosts own the concession on a small strip of beach and rocky coast in Castiglioncello, about half an hour south of Livorno, and we were driven there today for a relaxing day by the sea. The town is a small, chi-chi resort, which was the preferred vacation spot for a host of movie celebrities in the 50’s and 60’s. Marcello Mastroianni had a house there, a golden palazzo perched on rocks overlooking the sea (you pass it on the way into town from the north), and the neighborhood is full of fine private houses used by many of their owners as summer homes.

An Italian beach concession means that you pay to get onto the beach. If you’re a resident, you can purchase a membership for a season, including a cabana, or tiny cabin, which you can use for changing or storing beach supplies. That will run you a few thousand euros a season.

The concession supplies beach umbrellas and a choice of chair or “bed” . We were met by our hosts, who generously supplied us with chairs and umbrellas. This stretch of coast has acres of sharp rocks which reminded me of the California coast in spots. Audrey and I took a walk along the water above the rocks on a nice flat path built by the town, until it petered out after about 200 meters, and we faced rock.

Getting into the water was possible from the sandy beach or into 4 foot deep water, down a ladder directly into the sea. Sticking one toe into the water made me decide on the sand, until I realized the water wouldn’t even come up to my knees until I got in amonst the boats in the adjacent marina, so I changed my mind and climbed down. The water was incredibly clear and bottle-green. Tiny fish swam around my feet. The bottom was full of large rocks, and you had to stand on them, going from rock to rock, or take off and swim. The cold went away quickly, and the water was beautifully refreshing, the sea looked so blue, and we could see sailboats a few hundred yards out.

It was our last day in Livorno, and that evening we were again hosted by our hostess, her brother and his girlfriend, a sumptuous meal including fried zucchini flowers, cutlets of beef from the family’s cousin’s farm, and beautiful wines, some home-made.

It was hard to say good-bye after such a great week, but I have to think that our hosts need a rest after all they did for us. I hope we’ll stay in touch with them – they are a great, loving family.

Today was the day for the Uffizi, or Offices, once the administration center of Florence. Now an art gallery, it’s basically two buildings linked by a common colonnaded courtyard, situated on the Arno River, and a stone’s throw from the Ponte Vecchio. In fact, the tale is told that the top floor of the Ponte Vecchio formed a private walkway for one of the Borgias to walk from his home to the office, without mixing with the common folk, or even (horrors!), getting wet in the rain.

In any case, lines were again predictably long, but since we had our vouchers, not bad for us. We went through a security check, which didn’t seem too vigorous, and started the heart-attack-inducing climb up the many, many staircases to the upper floors which house the exhibitions.

When you finally puff your way to the top (I admit to having to stop once), you find yourself in an ornately painted corridor, off which are various rooms containing paintings and sculptures of various periods. Along the corridor are sculptures from the Roman Imperial period; the ceiling and walls of the corridor are brightly and intricately painted. Along a narrow shelf, high up, is a line-up of a rogues’ gallery of sorts, paintings of important personages in the history of Florence. One room of the corridor held a wealth of paintings by Botticelli, including the beautiful Birth of Venus.

Another room held one painting by Michelangelo, and others by contemporaries, which gave a quick comparison of the difference in their styles.

The windows from the gallery looked out on Florence along the river, and the city probably would be recognizable to a Borgia who showed up unexpectedly for work today. Unfortunately, I will have to get some photos from Tom to insert here, because for some reason, all of mine from this day of walking have gone awol.

By the time we had walked about 10 miles around the Uffizi, strolled around more of the city, just soaking up the atmosphere, and had lunch, we were all about ready to call it quits.

There’s a great deal we still haven’t seen. Next time, I would visit the Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens, and spend more time walking the old streets. Florence, even in September, is crowded, so you might think of planning your visit for the end of the month, or even the beginning of October.

amsolomon18

Day 6: Castiglioncello and the beach

Day 5: Florence, Day 2