Livorno

August 7th
Livorno

Today was a return to a port I’d been to many times, Livorno in Italy. From here, one can easily get to Pisa, Florence, and a large part of Tuscany. But today, due to a boat drill, I was limited to, well, walking around Livorno. The city of Livorno isn’t anything spectacular, and seeing as the morning boat drill didn’t allow us off the ship until noon, I missed the majority of the huge city market (which close just after noon). I was off the ship with Patrick and Igor (the trombone player from Moldova) just walking what was left of the markets looking for wine and cheese. Igor did end up finding some great cheese, of which I can’t even begin to describe, and I bought some wine specific to the Tuscany region. The best part of shopping for Tuscan wine in Tuscany are the prices - two bottles for under 7 Euro, or less than $10. But between the cheese, wine, and being back in Italy, that about covers the highlights of my day. It’s nice to be back in Italy though, regardless of the fact I can’t understand a single word anyone says, it’s the energy I enjoy.
That evening, back on the ship, I had a single jazz set to play, which I followed with going to see the theater performance I was not required to play. Tonight was one of the two production shows that the band doesn’t accompany, and seeing as it was my last chance to see the show with the original cast before they leave after this cruise, I had no choice but to go. It was a great time though, and even though I went by myself, knowing everyone on stage made it seem like I wasn’t alone at all. It’s great when you can go to the shows and sit at the front of the theater making non-verbal jokes with the people on stage, all inside jokes that can slip by the audience but be great fun for me and who ever I’m trying to mess with on stage. It was a great night though and a nice day off of playing sets in the theater. Thanks!