Griffin in Lucca, Italy Day 8 - July 4, 2026

After my last experience trying to take pictures while riding a tourist conveyance, I am far more cautious. t was Gaza, Egypt on the back of one of most cantankerous camels you’d ever meet, managed by a young boy who could care less. My attempt at a selfie almost did me in. So when I had the opportunity to ride a bike around the city of Lucca, I demurred, walking instead so I could take some snapshots along the way.

We reached Lucca by train, a 40 minute ride. I should point out that reaching the train station in Montecatini is a three quarter mile walk - downhill when leaving, uphill when returning.

Lucca is a picturesque walled medieval city, with interesting architecture, several churches and a number of towers. Unfortunately, from my point of view, it’s a popular tourist destination, so virtually every picturesque street has retail and restaurant shops their entire lengths.

Lucca was originally a Roman outpost, later a community of 10,000 people. The Roman colosseum is still there to be seen but it too is completely ringed by shops and restaurants. During medieval times the center was completely filled with houses. They were torn down in the late 19th century to produce a wide open space. The colosseum originally seated 10,000 spectators.

They say the city wall is the most complete in Italy. It’s a broad park - several hundred feet wide in many places - elevated above the city streets. It’s a pleasant place to walk, ride a bike or stop for a coffee.

The main church, the Cathedral of San Martino was in its current form, consecrated in 1070. Our local guide showed us a fresco, the only one in the church. It was uncovered when a false wall was taken down, revealing the fresco. One theory is that during the Protestant Reformation, Protestants had the habit of defacing “popish” artifacts. So the Catholics built walls to protect the frescos. Investigation is underway to see if there are more to be found.

Speaking of churches, there used to be 35 within the town walls. There are now five due to reduced attendance.

The towers apparently were constructed by families who wanted to stop Hatfield-McCoy romances between warring families. An ordinance was passed limiting their highth. Several are open to climbers. None of our group did so.

Then back home, up the hill and a couple of hours in the hotel pool. We left for the farewell dinner at 7:30 and retuned by 9:30 or so. The kids gave us thank you cards they had made and Chrisa and Alissio gave the kids souvenirs. The kids then spent an hour saying goodbye. The eight have developed into an unusually tight-knit group and they’ll genuinely miss one another.

So that’s it. We return home via Lisbon, arriving in Boston at 8:20 PM.

Thanks for traveling with us!