Day 1: Travel and Pisa/Livorno

Whew! What an incredible couple of days! The actual travel portion of the whole thing sometimes morphs into a strange world void of time or space, where one loses all track of day or night and muscles, joints and bones ache from sitting in such cramped quarters for so long! Sheesh, long gone are the days of throwing on that insanely heavy backpack and hittin' the road with wild abandon! We got old! It's a whole new ballgame now, one that carries with it an entirely new set of priorities and practicalities! 

Relaxing with the cool Mediterranean breeze coming through the open window at the Gran Duca in Livorno, I finally have a chance to catch my breath and recap the day. After a sleepless night of last-minute preparation and ridiculously early LAX arrival, a 5 hour flight to JFK and a 7 hour flight on to Pisa, the weary travelers arrived safe and sound to the heat and humidity of Tuscany. Overall, the flights were quite smooth and enjoyable, especially with the use of the individual screens on the backs of eat seat. They really do make the time pass quicker, and I was able to finally watch Sound City and catch up on some episodes of Regular Show that I hadn't seen. Special thanks to the powers that be upstairs for one of the most glorious displays of light an atmospheric conditions during the sunrise over France! 

After a nice and smooth customs entry and baggage pickup, it was time to get down to some serious business--Espresso! After a glorious little cup of strong Italian sunshine (which Bernard and I had been craving for weeks), the Surf music gods delivered upon us their esteemed and illustrious international representatives, none other than Surfer Joe Lorenzo himself and his wonderful girlfriend Anne! It was so nice to see and catch up with them after a year since their visit to SoCal last Summer!

After piling into the Valdambrini express, it turned out that Lorenzo needed to rake care of some brief business in Pisa proper, so Anne graciously offered to show us around and we would take the train to our ultimate destination for the day, Livorno, the seaside base for the international Surfer Joe headquarters. 

I had been to Tuscany once before, during my post-college graduation throw-all-caution-to-the-wind bohemian find-yourself backpacking adventure, but had never made it to Pisa. 

After crossing the Arno and winding through the ancient, narrow streets, one couldn't help but become obsessed with the incredible personality radiating from the antique doors and their imposing figural knockers.

Then, around a particular turn, it rose up out of the ground like some deformed stone missile, completely wowing all gazing upon it. Yep, that famous tower really does lean, but what throws one off guard is how off-kilter the perspective becomes the longer it's stared at. The thing is not just leaning, it's bending, and then at the top sort of straightens out again. It's much larger than I had imagined and the most impressive thing was it's position across the grass from the Baptismal and the main cathedral.

The only natural next goal soon became finding some refreshment, and it was time for the first glorious taste of fresh Gelato, in my case, Lemon. This was quickly followed by a nice outdoor cafe snack of another Espresso and the most delectably simple sandwich of marinated eggplant, prosciutto, tomato, lettuce and mozzarella! So simple, yet so satisfying!

A lot more walking and old-town exploration finally led us to the train station, where we would hop on a quick ride to Livorno.

After getting situated at the lovely Gran Duca Hotel, right across the street from the waterfront, it was time to succumb to the time-space vortex and crash out for a brief nap. Well, this turned into one of the deepest sleeps I can remember in a long time, and before we knew it, it was getting late! Time to freshen up and head down to the Aquarium to behold the Surfer Joe complex in all it's glory for the first time! I cannot even describe the excitement of finally seeing it all in person! What an absolute triumph and proof that dreams can become a reality! Who would've ever thought that a diner, live music club, Tiki bar, exhibition hall, patio and outdoor festival space based entirely around the passion for Surf Music right on the banks of the Mediterranean Sea in Italy would ever exist!?! It is truly something to behold and just catapulted my already gigantic admiration and respect for Lorenzo to a whole new level!

After sampling many of the delicious dishes the diner has to offer (including the most amazing deep fried Gruyere cheese bites!), we got a full tour of the whole complex, were re-united with many old friends from Surfer Joe tours past including Lorenzo's brother Luca and drummer Francesco, checked out some of the equipment we'd be using, organized some merchandise and before ya know it, it was time to head back to the hotel. 

Time to get some sleep--tomorrow's a big day, bright and early, with our first full band rehearsals! Can't wait!

On a side note...I already can't say enough kind words about my travel companions! Everyone has been a pure joy to be around, the energy is positive and upbeat, and getting along splendidly in the face of anything that comes our way seems completely par for the course! I'm truly lucky! Special respect, love and admiration must go out to my beautiful Marie, who powers through with grace and strength, even though the physical side of things got a bit overwhelming the first couple of days.

Buona Noche! Let the adventures continue....