Lucca - My new love (don't tell Jim)

We arrived by train to Lucca yesterday, followed the directions for our hotel and easily made our way through this beautiful town.  I know some people will find this hard to believe, but we actually stayed in a hostel!  At one time the Ostello San Frediano was a historic monastery and is attached to a beautiful church of the same name.  We had a nice room to ourselves and a private bath all for 50 Euro!  The beds weren't great but everything else was fabulous.  

Lucca is enclosed by Renaissance walls and the cobbled streets are beautiful and quaint filled with shoppes and restaurants.  Knowing I needed to carry whatever we purchased, I left without spending one euro excluding food or beverage.  Amazing!  The best part of our stay was dining in the Piazza Anfiteatro while listening to a free jazz concert.  At least this concert began at 9:30.  In Bologna, their summer movie series did not begin until 10:30 which was way too late for our first night.  

I decided to walk the wall which was less than three miles and found it peaceful and invigorating at the same time.  Such beauty everywhere you look.  As soon as I got back, we headed back out to roam the streets and find a place to eat.  These pictures are from our time in Lucca...

                                Our Piazza

           The stairway of our Lucca home

                           This is the back of our lodgings from my walk

So many more pictures, but we are now in the Citta da Firenze and will focus on enjoying the sights and sounds of this beautiful city.

Ciao,

Linda