On our way to the coast of Italy, our tour stopped off at Pisa for a few hours. When Lauren was here in 2009, she told us not to waste our time. When our tour guide did a mid-tour evaluation, many people also said it was a waste of time. Unfortunately, the cathedral here was closed when we visited so that made even less to do.
But Bruce and I enjoyed this visit and I'm not going lie, we had fun doing the poses with the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
The Leaning Tower of Pisa is only a small part of the gleaming white architectural complex that also has a massive cathedral and baptistery that dominate the grand green square. We thought it was a rather pleasant stop.
Pretty much all the visitors here were doing the pose. It's the thing to do here.
We also had lunch here since there were lots of cafes and tourist vendors. Just walking around the perfect manicured grounds was pleasant, too.
Another stop we made after leaving Florence was the Florence American Cemetery and Memorial.
This was a 70 acre memorial to American soldiers who lost their lives fighting in Italy in World War II. There were 4,398 headstones and it had the same feel to it as Arlington Cemetery in Washington, D.C. that we have visited several times before.
The U.S government operates and maintains this cemetery, one of 24 other cemeteries in 15 other countries. Most of us were surprised that these cemeteries even existed.
It was a very sobering experience walking around this memorial and it was the first time I realized that it was actually fall. This trip has made me feel so removed from the real world. This stop made me pause and look around at real life. Wars continue to be fought, lives continue to be lost. It's a sad truth and this place was certainly a reminder. We will not forget the fallen and what they fought for so I'm glad that places like this exist outside the U.S. To be perfectly honest, it was nice to see an American flag again. Am I starting to get a little homesick?
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