As Paul Harvey would put it, "...here's the rest of the story." Yesterday we met a young couple from Seattle. Apparently he could read Italian, and he told us about a railroad strike that was scheduled from 9 PM Saturday night until 9 PM Sunday night. They were frantically trying to re-work their train schedule, so they shared the information with us. Since we had planned and looked forward to worshipping with Ariggo Corazzo and the Christians in Pisa, the strike put us in a bind also. We were planning to spend Saturday night in Florence and take the train to Pisa Sunday morning in time for the service. Ordinarily there are two trains each hour, so making the schedule was no problem...until the strike. Late last night a very weary train agent told us, "No trains to Pisa Sunday morning. No trains!". We investigated alternate routes, buses, etc. Our final decision was to get up very early and see if any transportation might be available between Florence and Pisa. When we arrived at the train and bus station we found one train that was leaving at 7:30 and Pisa was one of the few stops listed, so we hopped on very quickly.
It all worked out well for us. It turned out that the strike involved certain regional trains, which we were able to avoid with some planning. Also, we arrived in Pisa VERY early for the worship service, so once we arrived at the train station in Pisa we took a city bus to the "leaning tower". There were very few tourists there early on a Sunday morning, so we enjoyed the view before taking a taxi to the place the Christians worship. They were all glad to see us, especially with the train strike problem. Olen has been communicating with Arrigo for about a year trying to arrange our schedule for worship while we are on this trip, so he knew to expect us. He spoke both in English and Italian during the Bible class and the worship service, with power point slides in both languages. His lesson, from Genesis 3, was "Six Mistakes in the Fall of Man". He commented that "Genesis 3 gives us a good opportunity to reflect and, if necessary, to make changes." He had an excellent Bible class and sermon, and we found the worship service very uplifting. We were able to sing several of the songs in Italian, especially those with repetitive words like "Send the Light".
After the worship service Arrigo graciously drove us to the train station. We did not have long before our train was to leave, so Olen and I ate lunch and boarded our train headed toward an area in Italy called Cinque Terre. It is located on the Italian coast on the Mediterranean. The area consists of five small villages connected by trains and trails. It is an unbelieveable place to hike. The trails between the villages are not as upscale as the hiking trails in Switzerland, but the views are fantsstic. The trails are 2-3 feet wide and run along the side of the mountains beside the sea, and are very rocky.
We are staying in the village of Vernazza in a small guest house right beside a stream at the top of the town. The photo shows a view of Vernazza from the hike we took once we arrived this afternoon. 
We hiked from Vernazza to the next town, named Corniglia (shown in late-afternoon sun from a spot on our hike). 
The hike between the two villages was supposed to take 1 1/2 hours, but that did not figure in photo stops (of which there were many), so it took us two hours. Along the trail there were olive trees, grape arbors, and many wild blackberries. We stopped to pick and eat a few of the blackberries, and they made us think of Olen's Mom, who makes the best blackberry cobbler in the world...and today is her birthday! Happy birthday, Mom! (I guess you readers think everyone in our family has a birthday in mid-September, and many of them do!) 
Having gotten up early this morning to try to get to Pisa, we were tired after our hike. Once we arrived in Corniglia we walked down 400 (yes, 400!) steps down the mountain to the train station and took the train back to Vernazza for the night. Tomorrow we plan to follow more of the trails in this beautiful area. Follow the beauty that you see tomorrow and enjoy the blessings you have.
It all worked out well for us. It turned out that the strike involved certain regional trains, which we were able to avoid with some planning. Also, we arrived in Pisa VERY early for the worship service, so once we arrived at the train station in Pisa we took a city bus to the "leaning tower". There were very few tourists there early on a Sunday morning, so we enjoyed the view before taking a taxi to the place the Christians worship. They were all glad to see us, especially with the train strike problem. Olen has been communicating with Arrigo for about a year trying to arrange our schedule for worship while we are on this trip, so he knew to expect us. He spoke both in English and Italian during the Bible class and the worship service, with power point slides in both languages. His lesson, from Genesis 3, was "Six Mistakes in the Fall of Man". He commented that "Genesis 3 gives us a good opportunity to reflect and, if necessary, to make changes." He had an excellent Bible class and sermon, and we found the worship service very uplifting. We were able to sing several of the songs in Italian, especially those with repetitive words like "Send the Light".
After the worship service Arrigo graciously drove us to the train station. We did not have long before our train was to leave, so Olen and I ate lunch and boarded our train headed toward an area in Italy called Cinque Terre. It is located on the Italian coast on the Mediterranean. The area consists of five small villages connected by trains and trails. It is an unbelieveable place to hike. The trails between the villages are not as upscale as the hiking trails in Switzerland, but the views are fantsstic. The trails are 2-3 feet wide and run along the side of the mountains beside the sea, and are very rocky.
We are staying in the village of Vernazza in a small guest house right beside a stream at the top of the town. The photo shows a view of Vernazza from the hike we took once we arrived this afternoon. We hiked from Vernazza to the next town, named Corniglia (shown in late-afternoon sun from a spot on our hike). The hike between the two villages was supposed to take 1 1/2 hours, but that did not figure in photo stops (of which there were many), so it took us two hours. Along the trail there were olive trees, grape arbors, and many wild blackberries. We stopped to pick and eat a few of the blackberries, and they made us think of Olen's Mom, who makes the best blackberry cobbler in the world...and today is her birthday! Happy birthday, Mom! (I guess you readers think everyone in our family has a birthday in mid-September, and many of them do!) Having gotten up early this morning to try to get to Pisa, we were tired after our hike. Once we arrived in Corniglia we walked down 400 (yes, 400!) steps down the mountain to the train station and took the train back to Vernazza for the night. Tomorrow we plan to follow more of the trails in this beautiful area. Follow the beauty that you see tomorrow and enjoy the blessings you have.
The Cinqueterre is on my "Short List" of places to go in Italy. I'm so happy you were able to worship with the saints in Pisa.
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