An hour outside of Florence is the city of Lucca still protected by its medieval walls. The walls are thick enough to support a paved path, lined with trees and flowers. I recommend renting a bike at one of the rental shops and enjoying a ride in the fresh air. It is a great way to see the city from above. Lucca is a beautiful city.
Old Italian streets curve, giving the illusion of a large, expansive city.Β There is no better place to see this optical illusion than in Lucca. Follow these streets and something new to delight pops up around every corner. My favourite is a market place in an oval piazza where a Colosseum once stood. Now home to apartments, restaurants, vendor stalls and shops. Some of the brickwork of the original Colosseum still stand in the arches that access the piazza.
Lucca boasts cathedrals and magnificent architecture. None are more fascinating than the San Martino church which holds the Holy Face of Christ. I am not a religious person but the history of this large, carved wooden crucifix is fascinating.
The story begins with a man who met with Christ and felt compelled to carve his true likeness. As he worked he feared that he would not do Christ justice, he soon fell asleep in exhaustion. When he woke, the carving was complete. He proclaimed that angels compelled his hands to finish the work while he slept.
The statue came to be in Lucca through what some call divine intervention. A travelling bishop found the statue through visions on a holy pilgrimage. Bringing it back to Italy he put it in a driver-less ox cart and let the animals wander until they finally stopped. San Martino was not the original church where the ox cart stopped. In the morning, the carving had disappeared from the first church where the ox cart stopped and reappeared in San Martino. Ancient roads came to Lucca for people to make pilgrimages to see the Holy Face of Christ.
Ladies, when visiting San Martino or any other churches, please cover your shoulders and legs when inside. They are all very conservative and traditional. Some the girls on our tour waited outside during due to improper dress. I always carry a pashmina when I travel for such occasions. It also makes a perfect nap blanket on train and bus rides. Though the autumn weather was warm enough to wear a tee-shirt.Β
The countryside around Lucca is nothing short of perfect. From the arches of the Aqueduct of Nottolini, to farmhouses and Tuscan villas in the hills above vineyards. The Tuscan countryside is exactly as postcards would have you believe. I stared out the window the whole bus ride to and from Lucca, my Kindle: forgotten on my lap.
Cycling around the medieval walls of Lucca was a perfect day trip. It left me wanting more time on a tight schedule.Β