Italy - Last Day in Cecina~

 Courtney & I were excited to tour Cecina.  We called the same taxi service & another driver appeared in minutes to pick us up.  We asked him to take us to the center of town.  Beautiful & low key - our first stop was a coffee shop with outside seating.

From in front of the church~

 Courtney ordered her coffee, I decided to try the fruit smoothie & my latest favorite, a chocolate croissant.  There was no yogurt in the smoothie, but it had a fresh, fruity taste.

Domenico Fountain~

 The town had such a nonchalant feel.  A lady was out in her robe hanging towels to dry right on the square.  A town with a more modern flare, yet with touches of it's ancient history & old world charm.

Store front~

We looked in several shops, I loved the depiction of two horses socializing over a bicycle.  I would have brought it home.

On our walk~

 Courtney had found an archeological dig that looked interesting to tour.  It was fun to walk through the neighborhoods & see the different housing styles, flowers & landscaping.  Pride of ownership was apparent & personal touches were everywhere.

A mail box cover~

 Notice a woman at the reins?  What a wonderful piece of art!  Crosswalks were sometimes in the middle of a block.  The intersections could be tricky with blind turns & underpasses.

Parco Archeologico

We arrived at our destination just before the opening time of 3 p.m.  Soon, the employees arrived & we paid three euros each as the entrance fee.  We were given a sheet with descriptions of the various locations on the property, where the archeologists were excavating the many different features.

Musical Instruments~

The latest of several imposing residences over many centuries, the Villa was probably the least prominent.  Built on a hill that originally overlooked the sea, there were views from the ancient pool.  The top floor open space was being set up for a child's birthday party.  Another source of revenue for the dig.

Back of the Villa~

We walked the entire grounds, such a feeling of history & of a time when the lifestyle here was opulent.

Unearthed plumbing for the ancient pool

As we continued our self-guided tour, we found an open area filled with aged olive trees.  Old, broken, split, cracked & twisted, they none-the-less were covered in olives!  The olive oil here is so very good & so different even from the best brand available at home.

Ripening Olives~

Again using Courtney's map program, we decided that we had time to walk back to the beach.  The goal was to arrive in time for sunset.  On our way, we passed a large old factory with an iron gate & the stone entry walls below.

To the right of the factory gate~

 There are big plans for the factory of weathered brick structures.  Courtney's map program wanted us to cut a block up, but I'd spotted a trail & wanted to see if we could get to it.  On our way - we again found the Terra Cotta factory that we'd passed on our way in yesterday.

Bitossi Terrecotte

The gates were still open & the selection of pottery was out of this world.  Absolutely, anything you could imagine, had to be here.  This business has been family owned & operated for over 100-years.

Acres of pottery~

 We took our time & looked through the yard before going inside.  Shipping anything would have been prohibitive, but I did find a running horse that came home with me.  Even though the shop owner didn't speak English, a picture of Farah told her what I was looking for :-)

From the bridge~

We had a long, straight stretch of road on our walk back.  After crossing the bridge, we came to a round-about where we took the street to the west.  In a short way, it became a trail leading to the trees.

Into the forest~

It was beautiful in the woods, a few trails broke off the main one.  We saw several families out walking & enjoying the warm, late afternoon.

The deep dark woods~

Soon, we turned west.  Taking a trail that lead to the beach - from there we would be able to get our bearings.  We came out just south of where we'd been the night before.

Sunset~

Tonight, there were more clouds & the colors seemed more varied.  The sound of the waves is deeper & of a lower tone than the Pacific.  Whether the salinity, or the warmth, the bubbles flowed in with the waves.

Bubbles~

 We couldn't identify the shore debris that was in spots down the beach.  It looked like chips of wood, with possibly some kind of palm tree bark mixed in.  The brushy material was definitely a plant of somekind.

On the Shore~

The incoming tide made it interesting to experiment with Courtney's crystal photo ball.

The crystal photo ball~

We had to watch that it didn't get washed away.  I loved the way it reflected the bubbles into a rainbow of colors.

Rainbow colors~

An incredible stunning sunset!  Reds & oranges over a blue/black sea.  

Sunset~

 We stood & watched our last sunset over the Tyrrhenian Sea~  Walking back to the little restaurant where we'd had dinner last evening, we were welcomed as old friends.  Dinner was again amazing!

Our route~

As we'd left in the morning, I hadn't turned on my Garmin until we were half-way to town.  At the museum I forgot to turn it back on until we'd crossed the bridge.  Even so, we walked several miles & enjoyed every minute.

Tomorrow, we'd be up early & taking the train back to Venice~

Italy - To Cecina!

We were up & packed early.  The rest of the group had plans to visit a winery & with only one car - we were dropped at the train station first.  The wait was only about 20-min. until we caught a train to Pisa.  There, after an hours wait - we transferred to another train that took us on into Cecina.

From the Train Station~

The ride down had been wonderful, with the train traveling right along the coast in several places.  Walking out onto the quiet street, it was obvious we had arrived in a seaside town. Our total travel time was around 4-hours.  It was past mid-day, we hailed a taxi to find our Air B&B.  Courtney - turned on her GPS & our driver did take a direct route.

Entry gate~

We went through the downtown area & past.  Going over a wide water causeway.  Another mile or so & we turned into a quiet little community of condominium type, residential mid-rise buildings.  Pulling up on the street side of the gate above, we paid the driver & Courtney found keys where they were supposed to be - all good!

Our patio area~

At the far end from the gate, was our unit.  A connecting covered passageway - led to a second small building where we found a washing machine & day bed.

#51 - Our bungalow~

Everything outside looked neat & tidy, we unlocked the door to find the interior just as nice.  A complete kitchen, queen bed & daybed.  The private bathroom was so welcome!  I'd brought two apples & some crackers, that was our lunch.

View from our patio~

We sat out to look through the maps & brochures we'd found on the kitchen table.  The temperatures were much cooler here than they'd been at the Villa & there was a nice breeze.   Saving town for tomorrow, we decided to take a walk-a-bout & check out our new neighborhood.

We came to the amazing ancient bridge~

We were pretty much the only ones around.  One lady was watering her flowers & exchanged greetings.  At the end of the road, was this bridge.  There was just a trickle of water running under it   - but such a sturdy bridge had to have been used often in the past.

Crossing a plaza area, we passed a closed restaurant.  As we looked at the sign out front, a gentleman stepped out to greet us.  The restaurant would open at 7 p.m. & there was no need for a reservation.  The neighborhood had beautiful private homes, condominiums & lush landscaping that included huge palm trees.  

Trail through the trees~

Ahead, we could see a forested area & followed the trail. I had my Garmin on - so of course we couldn't get lost :-)  The view was opening up - we were walking on fine, white sand!  We'd found the Tyrrhenian Sea.  Named for the Tyrrhenian people, identified since the 6th century BCE with the Etruscans of Italy.

Standing at the shore of the sea~

I couldn't help but take my sandals off & wade in!  One of those moments when time stands still...  Savoring a view I never thought I'd see, in a place I never thought I'd be; the Mediterranean Sea.  

The first wave~

Just the name had always had a somewhat mythical connotation for me.  I loved studying mythology in school & so many of those stories were written here.  I couldn't' believe how warm the water was!  76 degrees in August & September, but an average year-round temperature of 66. 

Soaking my feet~

Courtney disappeared from my view.  I found her out near the end of one of the jetty's - rock hunting.  Thankfully, the rock she wanted the most - was Way too big to bring home!

Italy's flag flying~

We walked the beach until we realized we were thirsty!  There was a little resort area to the north.  We ordered two big bottles of cold water & snacked on popcorn.  Back at the bungalow, we used the outdoor hose bib to clean the sand off our shoes & feet.  It was a very fine, sticky sand, so different from the Pacific NW.  We realized that if we wanted to go back for sunset, we'd better be on our way.

Sunset over the Tyrrhenian Sea~

Walking through the woods was a little eerie.  It was so very quiet & still mild, too. The few people who had been there earlier were gone. It was only us, the sun & the sea.

Lighthouse & sunset~

We stayed until well after the sun had set.  As we turned to leave, the moon made it's appearance over the trees behind us.

Moonrise~

Almost full, the last of the day's glow still in the air.  Our apples had long worn off.  Dinner would be our first real meal of a long day.  We returned to the plaza to find all the lights on at the little restaurant.

La Vita~

With only one other family there, we had no way of knowing if our only choice for a meal, would be the right one?  Silly us - to have any doubts!  We were so very hungry for salad.  Our waitress spoke broken English & between us, we hoped the translation was accurate.

Spritz & salad!

When the salads arrived, they were wonderful!  Ripe tomatoes, black olives, fresh greens.  Dinner was just as good.  Courtney ordered Calamari as an appetizer.  We expected it to be the breaded, fried dish we're used to...  But no...  It came unfried, maybe steamed?  Small curls on a bed of greens with large, thin flakes of cheese on top.  I took the first bite - so tender & flavorful - the best ever.

Dinner, as usual in Italy, is a long, relaxing affair.  We paid the bill & were leaving when the owner came out to offer us a complimentary dessert!  We had to decline.  The walk back was beautiful, small street lamps glowing, against a dark, velvety, star filled sky~