Last Saturday, the family took a day trip to Toscano (Tuscany) and brought along me and Luciano (family friend). Our aim was to check out this apartment on the beach that Pamela and Michele might rent for the summer. It took about an hour to get to Massa, the beachside town. The trip there was amazing – only a few minutes into the trip and we were in the foothills of the Alps, with snow-powdered mountains around the bend. (Randomly enough, the mountains made me miss America). Massa was very nice – it draws a fair number of tourists, though it’s no hotspot. There was a pizzeria on every corner; like Starbucks …except with pizza. We checked out the apartment, which was nice; I wouldn’t mind spending some of the summer a three-minute walk from the beach – which is exactly where we went next. For a couple hours, the adults reclined in the sand and the sun while Filippo ran through the water. It was far too cold to be splashing around, but Filippo is a water-baby and couldn’t stay out of the ocean. He was a muddy mess by the time we left.
After a customary visit to a bar (it’s what you do in Italy) and a cup of hot chocolate (this hot chocolate was very thick and soupy), we strolled through a neighboring town. This town is vacation-home to the (Italian) rich and famous. Though it looked like every other beachside town, the shops betrayed it for upscale: Prada, Gucci, Versace, etc….
In the distance you can see the Marble Mines. “Marble mines?” you ask. Yes, mines where they get marble. And not just any marble, but incredibly famous marble. The same marble from these mountains is the marble used by Italian sculptors through the ages, including Michelangelo. And everything in the town was made of marble, including the sidewalks, the monuments, benches … it was marble heaven! (If you like marble).
All in all, it was a wonderful first trip into Tuscany.
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