The simple joys of filter coffee

Today I am going to discuss another love of mine....coffee...its one of my indulgences. I simply love a great cup of coffee, it needn't be from an espresso machine, my absolute favourite is rather cheap...a South Indian filter coffee cup.....of course I never stop at just one cup it has to be at least two (their servings after all are rather small is my self justification and aren't we getting used to those huge mugs at a CCD/Barista).

Luckily for me most of my friends love their cuppa of filter coffee too, this joint Ram Ashray in Matunga is one of my top places for a guaranteed great cup of coffee, they have a separate section for families/women and service is brisk, so you are seated within minutes and the coffee placed in front of you as soon as you want it, its always freshly brewed and fragrant! (they have great medhu vadas too, which Harish can confirm)

I am the odd one out in my family being the solo coffee drinker in a house of tea lovers, leading me to speculate for years when I was mucho younger (especially on days I fought with mom over something trivial) that I had to be a case of mixed up babies....you know the stories our film makers so love to repeat time and again where the wrong baby gets taken home. I always assumed that there had to be coffee loving parents somewhere out there......which explained my coffee addiction. Never mind that I look like my parents and there is frankly no doubt about my genealogy...but still.

I have been consciously cutting down on coffee for the last few months after reading that it escalates the symptoms of pre-menopause (me being in that state at present). Hence my Krups coffee maker which was used almost 2-3 times a week by me and which made the house smell heavenly like a Barista, has seen very seldom use in the last few months. (basically since my diagnosis I have been maniacally trying to remove anything that can worsen symptoms and adding new food items and things which will "supposedly" make life easier) So I made the difficult switch from coffee to tea, tried that for a few months and gave up, I like tea but it just doesn't wake me up or pep me up like coffee. Honestly I don't even miss it.

Also for a while now I have been wondering why my Krups drip machine coffee can't produce the taste of filter coffee, so after researching online I discovered that the filter coffee decoction is that much more concentrated, enhancing the taste of the coffee. The coffee grounds stay in contact with the water longer and the ensuing decoction is hence much stronger. That explains why drip coffee always tastes slightly lighter to me when compared to a cup of filter coffee.

Yesterday I decided that instead of making 5 cups of coffee in the Krups machine and wondering if its making things worse for me every time I partake a cup, I should occasionally indulge myself rather than abstain completely from caffeine. Also instead of having it in the morning (my usual indulgence), which might lead to greater hormonal imbalance, evening consumption seemed a practical solution. Towards that goal getting something which made less decoction seemed to be a workable plan to me. So, yesterday evening I ventured to the South Indian Stores at Matunga and got myself a 2 cup filter coffee maker...Yay!!!

Less coffee, but concentrated doses and no wastage. Of course I had to use it as soon as I got home..and lo and behold in 20 minutes I was sipping a divine but lukewarm cup of coffee, having not heated the milk enough and my decoction was sitting for a while, so cooled down.
Anyways great coffee has no comparisons, so I was happy with my lukewarm but delicious cup of filter coffee :)

Here is a picture of my frothy cuppa, wish smells could be incorporated in blogs......you just had to have been there :P

Day 9 - Rome to Mumbai - Home at last...

Our travel agency had arranged a private transfer to the airport so we did the check out at the unearthly hour of 2am and waited with our luggage in the dark lobby with just the sleepy receptionist who I had woken up a short while ago. Our pick up time was 2.30am, it came and went and no sign of car or driver. I called up the emergency number listed on our voucher and the person informed that the driver had left and should be reaching shortly. Of course he arrived just as I switched off my phone; it felt like we were the only persons travelling to the airport at that hour through nearly empty streets with hardly any vehicles.

Our driver zoomed through the streets to reach the airport in half an hour. Imagine our surprise when we reached only to learn that the check in desks open just two hours before the flight, we were three hours early. Everything was closed and the few tourists at the airport were all trying to get some sleep in the chairs.

With just one cafe open in the whole place we had no choice but to sit there with our luggage. I ordered some coffee and we waited for some food as there was none. They told us that we could get fresh baked goods in an hour so we waited at our table for an hour and then picked up some sugar coated pastries which were welcome as we were both hungry.

With 2 hours before our flight at around 4.50am we headed back downstairs to our Swiss check in desk. There were just 2 young girls in the queue before us. After waiting in vain for 15 minutes we enquired with the clerk to be told that their system was down....how nice!

Another hour of agonizing wait later their system finally started working and we could check in. Then we headed to our departure gate, past the security check which was minimal.

Boarding the small plane taking us to Zurich we were both a little sad that it was the end of our journey. We got coffee and juice on board the plane....and of course a Swiss chocolate. The plane was partly full at that hour 6.50am, again the two of us were the only Asians on board, .

Zurich was cold and drizzling once again, we cleared passport control and the security check and headed to the gate for our flight to Mumbai. I picked up some chocolates from the Sprugli store and we both wanted something to eat but every cafe was crowded with no available seating space, so we decided to wait for the plane to get fed.

Our plane was on time at 9.45am; again an A-300 and we had similar seats on the right hand side of the plane this time. We were served breakfast and I settled down to finish my movie – Julie & Julia. Post which I got the chance to watch Django Unchained, lots of blood and gore as expected being a Tarantino flick. Then I switched to a comedy.

Once we landed we cleared immigration and headed to the duty free to fulfil our shopping list for family and friends, then hands laden with bags we headed to the conveyor belt. Our bags are almost the last ones off the plane. We both take prepaid cool cabs and say our goodbyes, my cab has to stop for fuel ...of course ...and then I am finally home after 9 days... the cats just glance at me as if I never left....

In hindsight I wish we had spent more time in Salzburg and Florence, the two places I felt we just got to the starters and missed the main course...both have lots to offer but we were time constrained. Also instead of taking trains maybe flying would have been faster for some of our longer journeys. Lesson learned for the next trip....I definitely want to visit Venice again, just to sit on San Giorgia Maggiore Island and soak up the Venetian air...and the views of Venice. That is something I will treasure forever, the breeze in my hair and the sun glinting off the water in the lagoon. Also a slower pace next time as we have seen the Must See's on the list for each place. Savouring the destination, instead of zipping through it is the charm. I think we got to do that only in Venice our first port on the first day. Still it was a dream come true for me, having only ideated about visiting Venice for ages, now I have left my footprints on the isle.

Day 8 - Tuesday - Rome

Both of us headed down to have breakfast which was the worst till date, the buffet was very sparse, the croissants didn’t look too fresh.

The stop for the hop on hop off bus was quite close to our hotel so after breakfast we headed there. Exchanging our vouchers for tickets and headsets we settled into seats on the open roof top. It was a nice bright sunny day, a bit hot since we had been here and both of us carried our sweaters instead of wearing them for once.

As the bus passed several attractions we heard the audio guide giving us details on the attractions, we had decided to get off at the Colosseum first and jumped out at the Forum stop. The first glimpse of the structure is amazing, as we have seen it countless times on TV and in movies and recognize it instantly.

 

Colosseum, Rome



Colosseum, Rome

Roman Forum

The bus passed by the structure to reach the stop and we had to walk back towards it. The Roman Forum and the Palatine Hills were to our left as we walked towards the entrance. Up close the structure is just as grand as in the movies, just much larger in real life. We queued up to purchase tickets.  We had already decided to not bother to visit the Forum for lack of time; you can purchase combination tickets for the Colosseum and the forum if you choose. Once inside its simply huge, it is the largest amphitheatre in the world and I can only imagine the grandeur of it’s hey days.

Even today it is a fantastic structure to stand in; as you gaze at the complexity of the structure; the floor where the animals were caged is almost completely in ruins now but the way the whole thing is set up is admirable. The arena is a huge circular space in the centre surrounded by seating spaces on all sides; we climbed to the first floor to get a better view of the arena space. After posing for pictures against the interiors and from the first floor, we headed to the balcony area and took some more pictures of the view from the Colosseum. Almost all the seating arrangements are destroyed by now, only one set of seats remain till this day, the ones used by the dignitaries to view the gladiatorial fights.



Colosseum Arena

We decided to use the washrooms before we headed out and of course there was a long queue for it. They have set up temporary washrooms at one end of the entrance, but they are free and clean.

Heading back to the bus stop we decided our next stop was the Castel St. Angelo across the Tiber River. As we walked on the bridge leading up to the castle we passed by several vendors selling souvenirs, scarves and an Indian fakir doing a magic trick! The structure is embellished with some beautiful sculptures of angels and also houses a museum.

Castel St Angelo - Rome



Castel St. Angelo

As we had to purchase a ticket for the museum and we had our fill of those in the last few days we chose to instead head to the next attraction on our list which was close by – the pantheon. It is in the Piazza Navona area which is located opposite the Castel St.Angelo on the right side of the Tiber River.

The Piazza Navona area is quaint and very walkable, filled with tiny alleys and squares with delightful looking shops selling paintings, jewellery, gelato stores, small bars and restaurants with tables set up on the street. They are all lined with well tended potted plants and Mansi and I decided to get some gelatos at one of the stores and then ambled down the streets in search of the Pantheon. Of course we got lost and directed in the right direction by helpful Romans with not a word being understood by either party, they gesturing the directions and we nodding our ascents. We landed up at the wrong square with another pretty fountain and a pretty church facing the fountain. After taking pictures and directions to the Pantheon, which we hoped led us in the right direction.

 

Suddenly we turned a corner and there it was the famous domed structure in the world at the opposite end of the square with a wonderfully cooling fountain in the centre. The external structure is dominated by humongous columns. Filled with hundreds of tourists the Pantheon still manages to make one feel quite small while standing in its shade. With the sun peeping out from the centre of the dome, the Pantheon is a functional catholic church. We saw several people praying and one has to maintain absolute silence inside, after clicking plenty of pictures we headed out.

The Pantheon, Rome

As it was almost lunch time and both of us were famished we decided to rest and eat at one of the restaurants in the square (Piazza della Rotunda). I decided to try the spinach filled ravioli and Mansi took some spaghetti. It was the best ravioli I have ever tasted, with a tomato sauce and melt in the mouth ravioli. After complimenting the chef and paying for our meal we decided to head to the Circus Maximus which we had passed on our way in the morning.

This time we found the bus stop without losing our way too many times. Getting off at the Circus Maximus stop Mansi took pictures and I sat on one of the benches taking in the panoramic views. This area was used by the Romans to hold chariot races and features a huge field which is now just pebbles and grass.

 I was desperate to use the rest room but there were none in sight, a vendor told us to head down the road but I was not too trusting of his information.

 

Circus Maximus

Next on our list was the Spanish steps and we got on the bus, but decided to get off near the Capitoline Hills as it looked interesting.  A small flight of steps leads to the Piazza de Campidoglio. Mansi enquired with one of the restaurants opposite the Capitoline Hills about a wash room and they had one and we could use it, finally. We headed up the hill to take in the views, there is a church at one end of the square, but it was closed. The steps leading up the hill have wonderful sculptures adorning both ends of the steps. Mansi chose to visit the church next door to the hill and I waited at the top of the steps. I did some people watching as there were tourists from all over the world there, some sitting beside me taking a breather, others wandering around taking pictures.

As it was quite late around 5.30pm I think we decided to make the Trevi Fountain our last stop and then head close to our hotel for some shopping for Mansi (she was keen to make some purchases for her family) and dinner. Catching the next hop on bus we got off at the Trevi Fountain stop and walked the short distance down the road.

The Fountain was so crowded, people everywhere, clustered in front and all sides of the fountain. The streets leading up to the fountain were packed to capacity. We quickly took some pictures and abandoned our plan of seating and spending some time there, it was too crowded to enjoy.

 

Trevi Fountain

Back to the bus stop and the next bus back to Termini Station. We decided to head to the hotel to freshen up and I wanted to do a web check in. The hotel had an internet desk near the lobby and I logged on one of the computers, the speed was so slow that the Swiss Airways check in page just wouldn’t load. Mansi tried on another system, no success. Finally I had to whatsapp a friend in Mumbai the details and she checked us in. We were super annoyed at the slow internet speed and complained at the reception desk.

Deciding to get some shopping done before dinner we headed to an area near our hotel, we had spotted some vendors close by selling clothes and hand bags and Mansi got some gits to take home. Then we headed down the street behind our hotel in search of a restaurant. Spotting a quiet shaded one with a beautiful awning covered in vines on a side street we stopped to eat. I had a chicken with bell peppers and some wine. The food was not so great and my chicken had too many bones to be enjoyed. But it was getting late and we had a very early morning flight back home so we called it a day and headed to the hotel.

 

Day 7 – Monday – 27 May – Florence - Rome

 

After breakfast we paid up the city tax and settled our bill and headed to the station. We were about to take our last train journey, felt a little poignant about that. The Trenitalia train ES 9509, arriving in Florence at 9.04am and reaching Rome at 10.30am. Since we were early we planted ourselves opposite the electronic display and waited for our train to be displayed. It was quite cold so Mansi paced on the platform.

I could see the platform on which our train was due to arrive displayed on the screen by around 8.55, but no Mansi in sight, with 10 minutes to go before our train left I started fuming at her, I couldn’t go chasing as I had both our suitcases with me, and suddenly I saw her and waved to come soon. Both of us raced to the platform and located our compartment which as luck would have it was almost three forth of the way down the platform. The train was similar to the one we had taken to reach here and once again the luggage compartment was full. I managed to add my bag on top of another in a gap in the rack; Mansi’s was too big to fit so we left it in the aisle and headed to our seats.

The train was packed being a Monday morning with corporate types and tourists. One lady actually gave her seat to her large suitcase and stood in the aisle almost for the whole journey till someone took pity on her and pointed to an empty seat down the aisle.

Our journey was about an hour and a half long again thru a lot of tunnels so we didn't glimpse much of the countryside as we reached Rome which was bright and sunny. Rome Termini station is larger than Firenze SMN, with a metro station in the basement and long distance and local tracks on the main floor. Lots of restaurants, stores on the ground floor, very noisy and chaotic with crowds of people on the station. We exited the station after checking with a local on the exit to use, getting out we got lots of mis-directions to our hotel and ended up in one of the streets parallel to the station completely lost. As luck would have it an Italian man who we stopped to ask for directions, looked at our voucher and called the hotel number and took directions. He was wonderful, he escorted us down the streets to our hotel; he didn’t understand a word of English! Our communication was solely by sign language 

We said our thanks to him as we waved good bye outside our hotel which as it turned out was just at the end of the street besides the station, we were walking in the opposite direction all along.

After checking in, we headed to our room on the third floor, the Nord Nuova Hotel had definitely seen better days, and the lift was old fashioned the type which opens on both sides. The rooms definitely looked jaded, this time our room faced the front of the hotel and had a tiny bathroom, the smallest we have had so far on our trip.

We had chosen an Isango Vatican Skip the Line tour at 1pm and decided to head out, grab some lunch and take the metro to the Vatican; the metro seemed the quickest option. It was around 11.30am and we had around 1.5 hours in hand. We walked to the station and decided on a quick lunch at McD, grabbing a burger and a drink.

Heading downstairs to the metro station which is in the basement of Termini Station we discover a strange system to purchase tickets at the window, you have to take a token and await your turn, once the ticket vendor announces your token number, you head to the window and purchase the ticket...there were quite a few people in the queue. I stood in the queue while Mansi who had spotted a vending machine headed towards it.

We met an enterprising Italian guy standing by the vending machine which was in Italian only helping tourists purchase tickets for a token fee (of course), since we were rushed we moved to the vending machine and with his help purchased 2 tickets to Ottaviano, it was a minimum ticket of I think 3 Euros each.

Ottaviano is on Line A of the Rome Metro System, there is another Line B too and the station is well marked showing the direction to take to get to the platforms...only hitch, it’s a long way to reach the platform, we ended up walking down multiple corridors following the signs on the walls to Line A towards Batistini, the other end of the line is towards Anagnina (the last stations on both ends of Line A).

The train was sparsely crowded and we both got seats after one or two stations. We eagerly kept an eye on the passing stations to ensure we could jump off at Ottaviano. The train was quite clean and air-conditioned as were the platforms.  It’s the 6^th station from Termini and a very short 10 - 15 minutes ride. There were hardly any people at the station so we couldn’t ask our way to the Vatican; we simply followed the exit signs till we reached the street. The station has signs showing the way to go to the Vatican and St.Peter.

At street level we could see the Walls of the Vatican right down the straight road leading up to it. We walked a bit quickly as it was nearing 12.15, along the way we were accosted by multiple Indian tour agents all hustling for various tours of the Vatican. Reaching the Vatican walls we knew from our voucher that the pickup point was in one of the lanes off the Vatican Museum, getting directions from a couple of stores we finally found our tour agency in a tiny basement in one of the side streets.

The place was filled with tourists all heading to the Vatican, we paid for our tickets, got our hands stamped and collected our tickets. We were also given headsets to be used on the tour to be able to hear our guide. Out total group for the 1pm tour was around 50 people in all. We trooped after our guide carrying a stick with a bright blue cloth tied at the end to help us track her through the crowds.

The walk to the Vatican Museum entrance was a short one, the lobby is huge with X-ray machines like at the airport where one has to queue to get our hand bags checked along with jackets etc. Large back packs are not allowed and have to be dropped off at the check luggage; Mansi had to do that with her back pack. We waited for our guide to complete the formalities; some people from our group to visit the washrooms located in the basement and listened to the instructions from her on how to conduct ourselves in the Museum.

Next we headed up a long escalator after showing our tickets to the security guard; the escalator avoids walking up stairs and ends up on the second floor balcony where the tour starts. The balcony is simply beautiful, a very large space with benches on the sides for people to sit and rest, several water fountains where one can refill water bottles (yes they are allowed here, we filled ours). The St Peters Basilica dome dominates the sky line here looking splendid against the bright Roman sky. We both posed and took pictures as did many of our companions. We could see a beautiful green well tended garden with benches filled with people below, there was a large water fountain in the centre.

St Peter's Basilica Dome as viewed from the Vatican Museum Balcony

 

Vatican Gardens

We headed downstairs to the garden, our guide pointed out various sculptures placed in the garden which were gifts; including a large copper coloured dome representing the Earth, a huge avocado carved from stone.

Here she made us gather around a huge sign board showing the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, she explained the progression of the last judgement by Michelangelo; guides are not allowed inside the chapel so she told us what to look for when we are inside, the restoration process, a small portion that was left un-restored and where we should look for it. The various nuances of the last judgement, a self portrait included by Michelangelo, the process used by him in painting the fresco and the difficulties faced by him to ensure the colours matched across the complete painting, at that time the process used was to use a wet plaster and paint on it while the plaster was wet, once it dried that was it, also the colour changed once the plaster dried. There was no re-work possible; every part had to be painted just once so it had to be perfect. His assistants were tasked with ensuring consistency in the colours, they had to be vibrant to be viewed from a distance and the figures had to be proportional when viewed from the floor. All of these presented great technical difficulties especially for the ageing Michelangelo.

Next we headed into the gallery of busts filled with historical Roman sculptures from 3 BC to 3 AD. Quite a few of them were headless, one remarkable one pointed out by our guide had intact eyes in a beautiful carved head, the rest of the statues were having heads but the eyes were missing...this is the only one which still has them to date.

 

Only Roman Bust in the world which still has intact "eyes"

Then we headed upstairs again to get some fantastic panoramic views from the gallery overlooking the city, all of us clicked great pictures of the city.

View of the city of Rome from Vatican Museum

Then onto the Pius Clementine Museum; where we saw the gilded bronze statue of Hercules; the only one which was not melted away to make weapons. We marvelled at the details in the mosaic on the floor taken from a roman bath, then onto the Greeks with the sarcophagus of Emperor Constantine’s daughter which had grape vines sculpted on its edges. 

Bronze Statue of Hercules in the Vatican Museums

Mosaic from a Roman Bath



Sarcophagus of the daughter of Emperor Constantine

Onwards we headed to the Gallery of Tapestries with some colourful Flemish tapestries hanging on the walls; some were very similar to the ones we had seen in the St.Marks Basilica Museum. 

 

Flemish Tapestry



Flemish Tapestry

Then onto the Gallery of Maps which has around 40 maps of Italy and the World represented on the walls in the form of frescoes, the ceilings in all the rooms are jaw dropping beautiful and words can’t describe them.

 

Vatican Museums Ceiling



Vatican Museums Ceiling



Vatican Museum Ceiling



Room of Maps Museum Ceiling at the Vatican



Maps of Italy - Vatican Museum



Map of Italy - Vatican Museums

From here we headed into the Sistine Chapel without our tour guide who asked us to locate her beyond the exit gate. Each group is just allowed 15 minutes inside the chapel and no talking and no photography. We entered the large rectangular room which was already filled with tourists, there were benches against the wall which were filled with people, a screen filled the other side of the room and beyond it we could see a ramp leading to the exit. It was quite dark inside the chapel and my eyes took some time to adjust to the gloom and then I looked up.....wow, I can’t describe the feeling that overcame me when I saw the last judgement, it is grandiose, vibrant, well proportioned and one can view the minute details of each panel. The colours of the restored portions stand out in stark contrast when compared to the one square of dark, grimy looking un-restored part. I truly appreciated the hard work and skill portrayed not just by the original painters but also the painstaking restoration work done since then.

We stayed in the room for what felt like 30 minutes at least, bit reluctant to leave but forced to as our necks started hurting from craning upwards to admire the handiwork of various artists. Leaving by the exit we couldn’t spot our guide in the passage outside the exit, we thought she must be further on and continued into the room. Soon we realized that we had lost her, she must be at one of the other exits we never noticed. We didn’t have any way to contact her either. It was around 2 hours into our tour and we were a bit tired so decided to head downstairs down the spiral staircase past the Vatican stores selling various souvenirs to the garden cafeteria to get some food. After eating and using the washroom located in the basement, we collected Mansi’s back pack and decided to head to the tour agent’s office just outside the Vatican museum to hand over our headsets.

Imagine our surprise when we reach the office and it’s closed! No signs nothing stating when or if it’s opening again. We were told that we would be fined Euros 100 if the headsets were not returned and since Isango had my card details I was concerned about that. After wondering if we should return the next day...but we had the hop on hop off bus all day long...Mansi spotted a small grill through which we could push the headsets, but we didn’t have anything to put them in, Mansi finally managed to find a bag with a draw string closure and added a note with my name, our guides name and our Italian cell number and tied the draw string to the grill and dropped it down the window into the closed office.

That done we headed to St Peter’s Square and the Basilica as that was the last thing on our tour and we had missed it. Just as we walk into the square who should we run into but our guide, she was so happy to see us as were we to tell her about the headsets, she told us it’s the guide who gets fined for any missing participants or headsets and we two were the only ones missing, the rest of the group located her after the Sistine Chapel. They spent some time trying to find us in vain. We thanked her for all the wonderful and enlightening information she had shared with us on the tour.



St Peter's Square - Vatican



St Peter's Basilica - Vatican



St Peter's Basilica - Vatican

The Square was filled with people and had chairs set up for the papal audience which is held on every Wednesday.  We headed to stand in the queue for entering the basilica, passed the mandatory X-ray machine for our bags. The queue is all the way from the square up the steps to the Basilica in an orderly fashion, as the entry is free you can spend as long as you want in the basilica. We spent some time taking pictures of the square from various angles and of the exterior of the basilica. The portico is also huge with large marble columns adorning it. There are several small benches along the portico where people can rest. Once inside I spent time admiring the vaulted ceiling which is simply grandiose. The space is tremendous being one of the largest churches in the world.



St Peter's Basilica



St Peter's Basilica

There are several smaller chapels in the large space, the dome dominates the structure. I just stood under it and spent some time taking in the frescoes painted in bright colours. Several sculptures adorn the various naves and chapels inside the basilica including the Pieta by Michelangelo. The whole space is very lavish in its decorations.

Mansi wanted to climb the dome so she headed upstairs and I chose to sit in the portico taking in the evening breeze blowing from the square. She took around 40 minutes to return all excited about the fabulous view and the panoramic pictures she took. We decided to head home and have dinner near our hotel in one of the restaurants close to the station, we had seen some Indian ones and Mansi was keen to try some flavours from home.

On the way to the metro station we spotted some street vendors selling clothes and Mansi liked some dresses which she picked up. The vendors turned out to be Indian, illegal immigrants from east India.  At the station we purchased tickets from the vending machines, validated them and took the metro back to Termini station.  The Indian restaurant turned out to be some fake version of Indian and not too appealing so we walked down the road and decided to eat at an Italian one.  We had some table wine and I had chicken and Mansi ordered some ravioli. Her ravioli was quite good; my chicken dish was all right.

We were both tired as we headed back to our hotel. Strangely both of us had been having sleep deprived nights throughout the trip. We had never had a full night’s sleep at any of our hotels always waking up at odd hours; I kept waking up in the middle of the night and very early in the morning, then finding it difficult to sleep again. We put it down to jet lag and being in different hotels. The Rome hotel room was the noisiest, but I slept like a baby that night. Poor Mansi had another sleepless night. I woke up feeling totally refreshed the next day.

 

Day 6 – Sunday – 26 May – Pisa – Florence

We had a early start and a filling breakfast in the dining room on the ground floor just off from the lobby. The place was almost completely packed with other Europeans and Americans, I think we two were the only Asians, we managed to find a table for two which we booked by dumping our bags on the chairs. The spread was not as diverse as our Innsbruck one but decent enough, I took juice and croissant and a slice of pie. There was bread, cheese and cold cuts. The pie was yummy. The day outside looked bright and sunny.

Off to the station and we purchased return tickets to Pisa. Our train was in half an hour so we hung around the station waiting for the platform number to be displayed. Since it was a local train it was in the small annexure to the station, we had to validate our tickets at the yellow boxes on the platform and as we had no seat number allotted on the tickets it was a free for all. Florence was the starting point so we boarded an empty train and chose seats on the right hand side with Mansi taking the window seat; these were seats of two facing each other, no tables. Soon the compartment filled up with a Sri Lankan family in the front seats and various European and American couples around us. People kept pilling into the train even when all the seats were taken opting to stand in the aisle like our local trains. We had a large Bengali family standing next to us jabbering away. The journey was an hour long. All announcements were in Italian so we could just make out the station names. We knew we had to get down at Pisa Centrale.



Pisa Centrale Station

The whole train emptied at Pisa with everyone heading out of the station. There were a number of bus stops just outside but we couldn’t locate anyone who spoke English to understand our query. Finally one of the bus drivers of the bus which halted at the bus stop told us to head across the street to catch the bus.

We make it across and find several of our train companions there already. We hopped into the bus which came along and purchased our tickets from the driver. After validating them on the machine in the bus we stood as all the seats were taken. It was a short ride of around 15 minutes where we got to see a bit of Pisa, a quiet pretty town with lots of empty streets with picturesque houses on both sides.

The bus dropped us at the corner of the Plaza to the Field of Miracles which has a huge arched gate guarding its entrance. There were a couple of police cars parked outside the entrance and as we entered we encountered huge crowds of tourists already there at this early hour (around 10am).

Looking across from the entrance it’s an amazing sight to behold the baptistery in the front and the leaning tower in the foreground surrounded by beautiful green lawns with the duomo dominating the centre. We started with the closest structure the Baptistry which is brilliantly white with the tiled dome against the bright blue sky, we both took plenty of pictures and posed on the lawns for some. The baptistery, the duomo and the Leaning Tower had tickets to be purchased to view the interiors and a huge queue for the same. We decided not to do the interiors of any of them due to lack of time.



Baptistery, Duomo & Leaning Tower in Field of Miracles, Pisa



Baptistery, Pisa



Duomo, Pisa



Duomo with the Leaning Tower in Pisa

Looks much smaller in real life, Leaning Tower of Pisa

Next we headed to the leaning tower after the obligatory poses holding the tower etc from the lawns. The tower looks amazing up close; we wanted to head back to Florence by noon to give us time to do some sightseeing before our tour.  So we headed back to the bus stop and caught the next bus to the station, unfortunately we got a bit mixed up and jumped off at the stop before the station. Luckily it was close by and we managed to get directions to the station which was a short walk away. Grabbing the next train to Florence we were back by 1pm.

Hungry I decided to grab a burger at the station’s McDonald restaurant. Mansi took a pizza slice, after using the next door restroom which was free to use we headed to the hop on hop off stop right next to the station. Our tour ticket gave us the choice to ride on any of the three routes but we didn’t have time to do all that and decided to jump in the first one. The commentary was a bit scratchy as compared to our Salzburg experience; we decided to get off near the Uffizi and explore the area near the Duomo and maybe climb the campanile before our 4.30pm tour of the Uffizi.

The complete area from around the Uffizi till the Duomo is shut down for traffic so except for an occasional motorcycle wheezing by one can happily walk on the streets without any fear. But the streets were crowded with tourists from around the world. We walked past the Uffizi and took pictures of the famous Ponte Vecchio Bridge and some of the River Arno. Moving to the Piazza Signora we admired the Neptune Fountain which to this day looks fantastic, if a bit green.

Ponte Vecchio Bridge from the Right Bank of the Arno River in Florence



The "Fake" David Statue

Neptune Fountain at Piazza Signora with the Palazzo Vecchio in the background

Uffizi Gallery

The Palazzo Vecchio is on one corner of this square which is surrounded by restaurants, a replica of David stands at the entrance; it was very crowded around this statue with everyone wanting a picture with the statue. There are various beautiful statues in the square, this is a great place to just sit and people watch.

We continued down the street in what we thought was the direction of the Duomo, the next on our list. But we ended up in the Piazza di Santa Croce in front of the basilica. I was thinking this is not the Duomo, where the hell is it. The Basilica is stunning white and looks huge being one of the largest churches in the world. This one had an entrance ticket too and a queue so we just took pictures of the exteriors and asked some locals on how to get to the Duomo.



Basilica of Santa Croce, Florence



Façade of Basilica of Santa Croce, Florence

After wandering through the streets and back tracking down a few lanes there it was in all its scaffolded glory...the Duomo with the huge tiled dome dominating the structure, the campanile stands primly to the side. There was hardly any queue to enter the Duomo so we went in and admired the glorious interiors, there is a huge clock face above the main entrance showing 24 hours in a day, the frescos on the dome are enormous with the last judgement...it’s a glorious experience just to stand under the dome and look up at the frescoes, it’s a pain in the neck ...literally but well worth the effort to just stand and admire the craftsmanship.



The Duomo - Florence

Campanile - Florence

 

 

Duomo of Florence

It was getting close to our tour time so we bid a temporary adieu to the Duomo and headed to the Uffizi, Mansi wanted to climb the campanile so checked the timings at the office, they told her it stays open till 7pm, we might just be  able to make it back in time.

We reached the gallery side entrance to find a queue and our contact who collected the voucher from us and put stickers on our shoulders. She also informed that water bottles were not allowed inside the gallery and would be confiscated if discovered in the x-ray machine. Mansi was carrying our bottle which had made its way from Mumbai all the way to Florence, we had to keep it at the side of the entrance, and we hoped to retrieve it on our way back after the tour. We were handed our audio guide machines through which we could hear what our guide said.

Our guide was called Matthew and he informed Mansi that she would have to deposit her back pack at the left luggage so off we went to drop it there. The tour starts from the second floor of the gallery and the staircase is huge, it’s quite a tiring walk all the way to the top floor. Several people in our tour group were left gasping with no water in sight! Take the elevator if your health is not too good or you want to avoid a strenuous climb.

Matthew guided us through the various exhibits showcasing the works of Giotto, Leonardo Da Vinci, Raphael, Michaelangelo (I just remember the one of the Dona Madonna, the Holy Family which is the only painting he completed to have survived to date with Mary’s dirty feet as shown in the painting) and the birth of Venus by Boticelli which is splendid up close. The rest are just a blur. The popular rooms were packed with tourist groups and we found ourselves sweating away and stripping off our sweaters. A few of the large rooms had chairs which were all packed with tourists taking a break. Another annoyance was random people hanging around our tour group catching the descriptions our guide was giving for free and blocking the view for the rest of the group. We tried to stay close to our guide to get the best views. No photography is allowed inside the gallery.

Our 1.5 hours tour ended at the terrace where we got some panoramic pictures of Florence and then we raced to the Duomo so that Mansi could climb Grotto’s campanile. We made it by 6.30pm with plenty of time to spare. While she climbed the 414 steps to the top I sat in a cafe opposite and had a coffee.

She was all excited and happy after her efforts and we decided to walk back towards our hotel to get some dinner. It was too late for our hop on bus and we were tired after all the walking we had done that day.

Dinner was again at Osteria D’Oste, but pizza this time with table wine. We shared the pizza between us. We had a 9am train to Rome the next day so decided to retire early.