A trip to the Opera

We went to Lucca for the week-end to see a version of the opera of Orlando Furioso by Vivaldi - the first time we have  been to the Lucca theatre.  It wasn't the whole deal - it was a concert with five soloists and a chamber orchestra.  Beautiful music, but with no costumes or scenery (or subtitles!), it was impossible to get any inkling of the story.  Great stuff though.

We are lucky to have been given the keys to a fat in Lucca from the friend of a friend - so were able to have a couple of nights there without worrying about late night travel to Barga.

With the sales on, the town had a great buzz in the evening, and we were able to enjoy the cafes and restaurants at our ease.

During the day, we also went up the Guinigi tower, which gives fantastic views over the town and surrounding countryside.  It has a novel feature - several old holm oaks growing at the top!

Parts of the Lucca walls are moated - night-time revellers beware!

The basilica church of San Michele in Foro looking grand in the sun - built on the site of Lucca's Roman forum

The Piazza del Anfiteatro where we had lunch in the sun - no jackets!  As its name suggests,  is on the site of the Roman amphitheatre. 

View over Lucca from the Guinigi tower.  The mountains we see from our window in Barga are just to the right of the church tower

The silhouette of the Torre delle Ore (Tower of the Hours) looms over the skyline

"Closed for the flu"!  There is a lot of it around at the moment ...

The evening sun lights up the buildings in Piazza Napeoleone 

Why we were there ...

Lucca's never short of arty goings-on - a sculpture appears in a portico