Rainy Mornings in Bath

I woke up on my first morning in Bath to this view.  I actually really love a good, chilly, wet and rainy day and since I've opted to hunker down in Bath for 5 days, I was in no rush to get out and about to explore.   

Bath is a town full of tea and coffee shops and the ones around Pultney Bridge have some pretty great views. I stopped in the Bridge Coffee Shop and lucked out with a table and a view of the River Avon.  Pultney Bridge is one of just 4 bridges in Europe that has shops on them (two are in Italy--Ponte Vecchio in Florence and Ponte Rialto in Venice) but instead of having jewelry or tourist shops, it has little shops and restaurants. That's my kind of bridge. 

I loved this little shop so much, that I've been back every day, either for a pastry and cappuccino for brekkie, or just to escape the chill for a bit with a pot of tea and a little Persuasion on my Kindle.  What else would one read in Bath?  

I think the wet chill in this country is probably the driver for the copious amounts of tea consumed in this country.  There's something just so toasty, oasty and comforting about sitting in front of a window with a pot of tea while the rain pours down. 

See that white little window on the far left--right next to the copyright symbol?  That's the window--how awesome is that view?

Alas, one can only sit in the coffee shop for so long on vacation before you feel the need to get up and so I visited the Jane Austen Centre.   I hadn't planned on visiting as I'd heard it was rather smallish and more about Bath during the time of JA...I'll admit that it wasn't all that impressive or worth the entry fee (sorry Jane).   They do however, have the new wax figure of Jane which I thought would be worth seeing.  In light of the pouring rain..why not right?

The JA Centre worked with an FBI forensic artist to create a likeness.  Ah, dear Jane.

Apparently, Jane is replacing Darwin on the 10£ note.  Survival of the fittest of course...as a writer who used irony so well in her works, you know Jane would enjoy that.

Portobello Market and Other London Goodness

What does a girl do when she only has two days in London?  

In past trips, there was always pressure to see the sites.  Since I've visited many of the museums and historical sites I decided to just go where the wind blows me...as long as it blew me towards the food. 

A lazy Saturday morning in Notting Hill and Portobello Market was such a change from Tower of London and Westminster Abbey rush and I have to say I loved it.   There were antiques and goodies everywhere--if only I had an inch of space in my suitcase.  

First things first, I'd like to give a little shout out to whomever thought this up.  These little reminders save my life at least a dozen times each day as I'm crossing a street in the UK.  Thailand should adopt this too.

I was pretty excited to spend a morning wandering around Portobello Market because I'd heard so many great things about the food stands and coffee shops along the way.  In the end, it really is all about food.   I think I could happily live in London and head to Portobello Market each Saturday morning to pick up goodies. 

Quite possibly the best olives in the whole, wide, ginormous world. 

Yes, while the olives and the loaf of olive ciabatta I picked up were fantastic, Portobello Market is etched in my mind as the place where tables of donuts line the streets.  Just so you know, this is the equivalent of heaven on earth and it just struck me now that I completely forgot to buy one.

After Portobello Market, I just started walking.  No map, no agenda, just a big umbrella in one hand and a camera in the other.  Because the tube can sometimes take awhile, I guess I thought Zone 1 was a lot bigger than it is.  I walked from Portobello Market, through Regency Park, Russell Square, Covent Garden, down to the Houses of Parliament and across to the South Bank from one side to the other.  After all was said and done, FitBit said I only walked 15 miles.  Who knew London was so walkable?

Everytime I plan a trip to London, I forget to look into tickets at the Globe Theater.  It's inexplicable really since it's been on the top of my bucket list forever...see one of Shakespeare's plays in the Globe.  Since I only seem to remember once I arrive, all tickets are of course sold out.  Next time.

I started taking a photo of this poster at the Globe because I loved how clearly you could see St. Paul's reflection.  The play's poster is just a bonus.  

I've been to the Tower of London a few times so didn't have any plans to go inside or even stop but part of my walk took me right back by the Tower.  The Tower currently has a special commemoration entitled "Bloodswept Lands and Seas of Red" to honor the fallen soldiers of WWI.  There are/will be over 800,000 red ceramic poppies filling the moats and after sunset, they read off names of some of the British that soldiers that lost their lives in WWI. 

People continue to surprise me.  I don't know who's brainchild this was, but it was powerful, moving, beautiful and a bit haunting.  

It's the little surprises that make travel all that much more memorable. 

My Lucca Favorites

Time flies as we all know and now Italy is just memory of the past. I loved Italy, I loved the adventure, and the immersion and everything about it and Lucca was such a wonderful place to study Italian.  It's a small enough town to really feel like you are living in a real town rather than a tourist destination.  

Some of my favs of Italy are.....

Concerts.  Lucca is the birthplace of Puccini and you don't ever lose sight of that when you are here--that's his phenomenal foot in the statue above.   There are nightly Puccini concerts in one of the churches...Mondays were my favorite because it's the Puccini and Mozart night every week.  Here in the square with Puccini's house and museum(and statue), I was even lucky enough to come across a free open square concert.  I love the ladies in the window listening to the concert from their room. 

Palazzo Pfanner has a small little garden that you can see from the walls.  It's full of statues, a large fountain and of course, flowers.  I skipped the house and just chose to garden visit and spent hours reading on a bench.

The amphitheater again...just because it's so historical.  There are a few benches and of course lots of cafes (that may or may not cater more towards tourists). 

Piazza San Michele.  This square is the "center" and always has a street performer or two.  It's another great place to sit and read, with a little Mozart or even contemporary music in the background.

My personal reading place.  Sorry to all the tourists who wanted to take a photo without someone sitting under the statue.

I'm not going to lie...I love having access to familiar things.  How cute is this Sephora?

There's always a debate in Italy about the best pizza and the locals like this one.  I tend to prefer the more Napoletana type crust that is thicker and chewier, but for Lucca, this one is tops in my book.  The crust is thinner and bit crispy but full of that awesome wood-fired taste.  I tried a lot of pizza in Lucca to be able to tell you all that this was the best.  There's an inexplicable phenomenon in Italy where pizza crusts and breads are not salted.  Salt girl that I am, I wasn't the biggest fan and I found that many places compensated by over-salting the pizza sauce.  Pizza da Felice did not.

They whack off a piece with their ginormo knife and you pay by the kilo.

Lucca is also known for their chickpea flour pizza--the crunchy, salty cheese makes it all happen. 

La Grotta has salames, hams and pestos.  To me, it was the place to pick up fresh mozzarella.

Best bread in the city at Forno a Vapore although I really bought only focaccia which was outstanding.  There's a generous sprinkling of salt on focaccia.

And this little square right off of Via Buia, is a great place to people watch....locals bring their water bottles to fill.

No bottle, no problem.  There's also a green grocer here where I bought fruits and veggies.

This cafe is outside the city walls near the school but I had to include it.  Marco and his beautiful wife serve up the best cafes and cornettos I found in all of Italy.  This was my daily go-to place. 

If you are in Lucca, it only makes sense to take advantage of one of the many towers available for climbing.  I chose to climb Guinigi Tower for views of the terra cotta skylines across this beautiful city.  

And of course, some things are just fun little surprises you encounter while exploring a city.  I am already missing Lucca.