Here Come the Clowns

We are in Lucca, a picturesque Tuscan town of 83,000. The cool part of Lucca is really cool, and it is completely enclosed by old high walls. Inside the walls, you could be in Europe a century ago if it weren't for 50% saldi off all the clothes and handbags ranging from cheapy-trendy to ultra-sophisticate. I have found a toy store that is so full of beautiful things that I couldn't pick something to buy under duress and ended up with nothing, which is the theme of shopping on this trip. To date, the only thing I've bought is a 5 euro replica of the Mouth of Truth for Ezra.

We are at a bed and breakfast just outside the old walls that should really just be called a bed, since there is no breakfast for you if you book on Expedia. We have successfully done our laundry while having a beer and our clothes smell only slightly douched with perfume- Josh says, “it's really not that bad if you don't put it next to your skin.” We were ushered from the laundry mat at 10:35 by a uniformed man that look more like Politzia than laundry mat lock-up, and might have been. We understand its common to have more than one job here. After locking up he jumped in his car and sped away as if he were off to some emergency so maybe he actually was.

So, the Politzia are the investigative serious police business guys, while the ones who write traffic tickets and handle the minutia of Italian bureaucracy are called, and I love saying this word, the Carabinieri. Its said that if you want to see something mishandled or blundered, call the Carabinieri right away. I love their sirens which are cartoony and a little too loud. The cars here are so small its hard to take them seriously- it seems like if one were to hit you, it would bounce right off you. Maybe that's why they have the loud siren.

We had another big restaurant meal tonight and it was more of the same perfect pasta, good cheap wine, weird French fries without ketchup, and a house specialty of blended bean soup with spelt.

Tonight we are listening to snoring kids and trying to figure out our impending car rental for tomorrow. And tomorrow we are off to Pisa for the car and maybe the Leaning Tower, and then to Chianni to see the clowns...

Oops, we just rented the car from Lucca, so the heck with Pisa, which we hear is for tourists, anyway. Which we are, but so what. That's how fast things can change in Italy.

And, for those of you asking for pictures, its a lot harder than it would seem to get them on here. Especially when we are paying 4 euro per hour for the privilege of using the Tuscan internet. But don't worry, Mom has taken literally thousands of photos.