When the Moon Hits Your Eye Like a Big Pisa Pie

We had a great time in Pisa!!!

We stayed at the hotel "Baloney", spelt "Bologna".

The desk people were a little on the cranky side.  Karen interrupted one guy when he was counting out his coins, Scrooge-like, at the front desk.  Apparently, having to respond to a question and count to quatro-cinco or where ever he was, was just too much.  He threw the coins down in exasperation and asked her what she could possibly want.   Now I have been with this pretty girl for years and that poor sucker didn't realize that she had the option of glaring him into a tower of flames.

She let him live, though he was clearly on probation.

He was oblivious, but tried to make conversation.

Cranky guy:  "Is this your first-a time in-a Pisa?"

Karen:  "It's mine, but my husband was here 40 years ago."

Gary:  "Last time I was here, you guys had a tower with a pretty bad tilt, did you fix it?"

Cranky guy:  "It-a no fall down."

After our train ride, we were both feeling a bit warm, tired and used.

Our room was very clean, nice wood floors in the bedroom, tile in the bathroom and a window which looked out over an enclosed space with a ceiling.  Not quite a courtyard.  More of a prison yard, although not in a bad way.

The problem with this arrangement was that the window did not allow fresh air to come in.  Fortunately, the room had one of those great ductless air-conditioning units.  These are called "splits", they are use a lot in historic houses in Europe and the Caribbean and we have them back at our house in Lake Oswego.  We love them!!!!!  Karen turned it on, adjusted it, turned it on again, adjusted it some more, and turned it on.  She repeated the process, often.  The split hung there, high on the wall, quietly observing our every move.

In fairness, the light would go on and the vent would open and close.  However, the split seemed to think that was sufficient.  It didn't know Karen.  Karen views the Arctic as "pleasant".  People who spend time at our house compare it to a meat locker.  If our room in Pisa was a meat locker, the meat was going to go bad.

Karen, of course, has an answer to issues like this.

"Gary, go downstairs and talk to the front desk.  Tell them the air conditioning doesn't work."

"You mean the cranky guy who can't count to ten?"

"Yes, tell them that the hotel advertises air conditioning."

"You know that advertisement might have more to do with the Summer than January when it is 38 degrees out."

I got the Glare.  I decided that I should probably go talk to the cranky guy at the reception.

Cranky guy first looked at me like I was from Mars when I said the air conditioning did not work.  "You mean, it is too cold?"  He then told me that the rooms were set to "16" which of course is in Centigrade and I might as well been from Mars - "What's that in American?"  It finally came out that all of the "machinas are a link-ed together like a bigga puzzelo" or something.  He promised me that he could turn the "machina" to ventilation only, but not air-conditioning.  Of course, he couldn't do that either.

I actually didn't see that guy again before we left.  I don't know whether Karen permanently maimed or killed him.  She didn't say and I didn't ask.

It was dark, we were in Pisa, we were hungry and we had to see that tilty tower-thing.  We were off!

The Hotel Baloney is real close to a lot of great things, but it spills out onto a narrow street, with narrower sidewalks.  On the street, cars, motorbikes, taxis and large buses all go incredibly fast.  I'd say they have little regard for pedestrians, but that would make them seem more caring than they actually were.  We survived the several blocks to the river, crossed the bridge and walked up a delightful, broad, Christmas-lighted avenue with lots of pedestrians.  It was great!!!

We walked a long ways and the street became less occupied, as in empty.  It's at times like this that we have one of our typical conversations:

Karen, "Are we going the right way?  You've been here before."

Gary, "That was 40 years ago.  I actually don't remember and they might have moved it."

Karen, "The leaning tower?"

Gary, "Last time I saw it, it was."

And then, as with most of our journeys, we turned the corner and a magnificent sight came into view.  The leaning tower and the duomo, bathed in light!  We walked around the tower and the church, amazed at what we were looking at.

It really is spectacular just as a sight and recognizing the millions of people over the hundreds of years which have looked at pretty much the same thing.

We stopped at a restaurant within view of the Tower, L'Europe, which appeared to be a likely spot.  It was a quiet night for the guy trying to attract people off the street, as we were about the only people on the street.  We had a nice bottle of wine and food, relaxed and looked at the view.  

At the end of the evening, we ordered up a taxi which took us back to our hotel room and a delightful sleep.

Ah, Pisa!