The wonderful walls of Lucca

Before it became a modern country in the late nineteenth century, Italy comprised many small city states, hill towns and provinces of various kinds. Many cities had walls as fortifications, mostly to protect themselves from other cities. Lucca was no exception, but has become exceptional because the medieval walls are still completely intact, and are a popular feature of the city. The image at the top of this post shows a version of the city and its walls, and gives a sense of the most recent constructions. (In fact, there were walls in Lucca in Roman times, around 200 AD, but the present walls were completed much later in the 16th and 17th centuries.)

These days the map shows the walls around the city more prominently. To give a sense of scale, the distance around the walls is about 4.2 kilometres, so a walk right around is a feasible undertaking for many people. Lucca is a small city of human scale.

When I arrived in Lucca, I had to enter the city via one of the few main gates that allow vehicles through, Porta San Pietro, near the train station, as my apartment is inside the walled city (I walked through it, however). The next morning, I needed to leave the city to get to a supermarket outside the walls, and walked through Porta Santa Maria (Yes, all the gates are named after saints.) But, coming home, I spotted an alternative (pedestrian) route as well as getting a good look at the walls on a frosty morning. In fact, I didn’t actually spot it unassisted – I just followed others, assuming they were getting into the city somehow. My first walk on the walls made the frosty morning clear. (Click on the pictures to get a better view.)

In fact, I discovered that I could see some of the path along the walls from my bedroom window, and it was a lovely clear day, so I decided to talk a walk; I found an easy ramp up to the walls close to my abode.

Walking along the walls is a very popular pastime here in Lucca – and for good reasons: it’s a lovely environment, with great views across the city and its nearby surrounds, as well as the Garfagnana Hills beyond the city. Here are a few snaps from my first wanderings:

When I stayed in Frascati last year, I discovered the simple pleasures of taking a walk, and saw that lots of people do so late in the afternoon. The passeggiatta, as it is called, is a daily ritual for many people, and already I’m pretty sure that it will be a daily ritual for me while I’m in Lucca. It’s a lovely ritual.

For many people, it’s not just exercise and fresh air … it’s a social occasion to walk with friends and family and (at least for the locals) a chance to meet up with neighbours and colleagues. While lots of people walk alone (as I am doing), others walk in groups while others are walking the baby or the dog. As well as walking, there are lots of alternatives too, some of which can be seen below. As might be expected, there are people exercising vigorously, while others are doing tourist things on pedal cars. There are bicycles, scooters, pedal cars (almost certainly full of tourists), prams, and even rollerblade-skies.

As well as fellow walkers, there are other things to see along the walls. I noticed that there are lots of seats to sit upon (and often saw people using them) – always a good sign: an important contribution to social life. I enjoyed a busking organist, watched people playing in a park (there are several bulwarks around the walls, acting as parks, as can be seen in the map above) and I delighted in a nativity crib outside one of the (few) restaurants along the way. I also saw lots of defibrillators, presumably for those who take the exercise options too seriously.

Both sides of the walls can be seen, of course, both into the walled city itself and out to the nearby outer parts of Lucca, through to the lovely hills beyond. The tall bi-coloured bell tower of Lucca’s lovely cathedral is easily spotted as well as a more distant church beyond the walls. Sometimes, the views from the wall provide a good look at the walls themselves, too. I think the statue is of Santo Donato, overlooking the gate named after him.

As the day wears on, and early evening descends, more and more people join the passeggiata; perhaps after a day’s work and after the day-tripping tourists have gone home? There are many paths up to the wall from inside the city.