Lucca Ancora

Lucca Again

We bought this stylized map of Lucca from a local artist last fall. Our apartment would be in the far left lower corner, next to the Chiesa di San Michele in Foro.

In less than 24 hours, we will be on a plane back to Italy.

And as a side note, what a crazy time to be arriving in Rome with our little hotel coincidentally less than a block from the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore where Pope Francis was buried today. I’m so glad we booked and paid for it months ago.

But I digress.

This will be our third trip to Lucca in eighteen months and some people have asked why we tend to return to the same town rather than see new places.

It’s not like we don’t have lots left on our bucket list, and maybe someday we will check off a few more, but for now we seem to be very happy to stay in one spot and just pretend we live there.

Apart from all the normal travel we’ve done in the last twenty years, we’ve also ‘lived’ in Orvieto, Italy (2016), L’Isle sur la Sorgue, France (2022), and Lucca, Italy (2023 and 2024).

Our beautiful apartment in Orvieto where we stayed for a month after walking the Camino in 2016

Orvieto and L’Isle were lovely but so far, Lucca is the only one that fits the bill 100%. In fact, I can’t imagine finding another town so perfect for us.

Entrance to L’Isle sur la Sorgue, which has canals from the beautiful Sorgue river flowing through.

Over time, we come up with criteria for OUR idea travel destination:

• must be a medieval village with beautiful cobblestone streets, ancient buildings, and a rich history

• must have everything we need within walking distance - shops, restaurants, cultural activities, decent transportation but very walkable

• preferably not a tourist haven

• approximately 1-2 km across, cozy but big enough to still get lost

• must have busy piazzas and a local community who live and work there

• bonus points for a river or canal nearby

• a one bedroom apartment within the old town for $100/night or less, preferably with a terrace

• bonus points if the apartment includes bikes

• must have rail connections to major airports such as Rome or Paris, and short hops to nearby towns to visit

Lucca is the only place we’ve stayed so far that meets ALL of our criteria, and then some.

We spent three weeks there in September 2023, returned for another three weeks in September/October 2024, and now we are headed back, to the same apartment, for six weeks.

I am planning to be sitting at this table for aperitivi some time this week

So - watch this space for photos and updates about our trip. If you’ve enjoyed reading our travel updates and seeing our photos on my Facebook page, be sure to subscribe to this Substack because I will only be posting links on FB for a few weeks and then no more. Every update will coming directly to your email box, to be read there or online.

Maybe over the next six weeks, you will begin to understand why it’s “Lucca Ancora.” (Lucca again)

Ciao ragazzi!