13 April - Mercoledi

After studies today we joined a guided walk arranged by the school to explore Roman Lucca.  We have previously come across the fact that evidence of the Roman city can be seen in the layout of modern Lucca but hopefully today we would learn a little more. 

The teacher leading us clearly knew her stuff and explained a lot to us.  We understood somewhat less.  We saw a part of the wall that had been discovered when some sort of building had been refurbished so it had been rebuilt in the road nearby although we did not quite catch why.  We then went into a lovely old church that had used part of the original Roman structure in situ as one of its main walls and were told about where the stone came from and how it had been moved to the area.  It might have had something to do with the river or maybe that part was to do with floods and why the city wall was not exactly square, it’s hard to be sure.  It was interesting to walk the route of the original wall (although the only evidence is in the way the current streets run) and the location of the eastern gate is just up the road from our flat, which as it turns out is on one of the original Roman roads than ran through the city.  There was an interesting bit to do with spears and swords in the west of Roman Lucca.  It was either an investment in manufacturing to boost the economy of the city or maybe there had been a battle there; that bit was confusing too.  Finally we ended up at the piazza that was built on the location of the old amphitheatre and saw one of the original entrances.  The whole thing lay just outside the old city walls (we know this for sure because it was in the picture we were given of the old Roman city) but why was another mystery of translation.  Anyway, for sure, the Romans were here at some time in the past and have left us the evidence of that fact; we did manage to work that much out.

The old Roman Theatre built into a church