Griffin in Italy Day 3 - May 29, 2026
Final count: Eleven adults, 5 girls and 4 boys. Griffin now has 8 new friends. ‘Nuff said.
You read a trip’s itinerary and have no real idea what it’s really going to be like until you’re there doing it. I must admit I was a bit sceptical of the Medieval weapon activity. But, in the flesh, it really did work. Three Medieval enactors put on a seminar that taught us all what people in the 13th through 16th centuries wore, and the tools they used to, hunt and start a fire. Their intent was to bring some reality to the subject of Medieval history, which otherwise can be pretty dull when read from a history book. We all got to try starting a fire with flint and steel, fighting one another with swords and shooting a bow and arrow at a bell hung by a tree.
Who do you think was the only person to hit the bell out of 19 participants? Nana.
Before this activity, right after a buffet breakfast, we had an orientation session where the rules of the program and the itinerary were discussed. Everyone introduced themselves.
And after the activity we all walked down hill to the town of Montecatini for a lunch of traditional Italian lunch. You know how in Italian restaurants there is a listing for Aperitivo · Antipasti · Primi · Secondi · Contorni · Insalata · Formaggi e frutta · Dolce? We didn’t miss a single item. The secondi was a massive pork loin, bone in. What a meal.
Back up hill to the hotel (a 20 minute walk) for a dip in the pool. Nana went with some others grocery shopping and taxied home. Griffin and I hoofed it.
Unfortunately, I discovered my bathing suit, which i pulled from the drawer at Melrose, was defective (or I had become defective girth-wise; take your pick). So back downtown I went to a clothing store that was actually open. Most stores close from 2 to 4 PM or so but this one was advertised as open. And open it was but much to my chagrin it sold only ladies intiment apparel. I walked around downtown and found a swimsuit store and sat on a park bench until 4. By 4:10 I had my purchase. Next door was a slushie shop so I bought a lemon drink to cool off and asked them where to get a cab. The lady yelled for her son down the street, he came running and called me a cab. Saved once again by buying a cold drink and some really nice people.
Around 4 PM our leader gave us a really interesting lecture on how the Italian language developed, blending in some Italian history as he did so. He gave us a pronunciation guide and then challenged us to list Italian words that are commonly used by English speakers. You know, like pasta, bruschetta, alegro, capuchino. That kind of thing. I think we all found it an interesting session.
And around 5 PM we had a social hour where the kids exchanged sounveniers from home as a get-to-know-you exercise. The adults had a parallel activity, chatting over drinks.
Finally, we caught the 6:30 funicular up the hill to the Alto section of Montecatini. A fun ride and great views of Montecatini Terme down below. Before seating ourselves for dinner the kids and the adventuresome adults climbed the hill to tour some 11th century castle remnants and a local church with an attached museum of religious artifacts.
Remember all those Italian courses? We repeated the list in an outdoor restaurant. the Secundi dish was ravioli.
Then down the hill and back to the hotel. The kids hung out by the pool until lightning flashed in the distance around 9:30 PM and so off to bed we went.
It’s on-the-bus at 8:30 for a trip to Pisa, including a climb up the leaning tower and then some time at a local ocean.
