Some Like It Greek - Sue Roberts Page 0,30
in the views.
‘Fancy scooting up there, since you have your flat shoes on, Demi?’ I ask as we stand outside the Torre Asinelli. I stare up at the sand-coloured building that seems to reach right up into the cloudless blue sky.
‘Although on second thoughts,’ I say as I study the information poster, ‘it says there’s almost five hundred steps inside. Maybe we’ll give it a miss.’ I’m already walking away and thinking about where we should head to next.
‘Are you frightened I will beat you to the top?’ Demi asks mockingly.
‘As if,’ I say, sounding far more confident than I really am; despite my younger years, Demi has kept herself super fit.
After a couple of minutes of her convincing me that the view from the top will be worth the climb, I buy two bottles of water from a street vendor, and we pay our euros and head inside to the base of the tower. As we begin to climb, it quickly becomes apparent that this is a far more difficult challenge than I expected. The staircase is narrow and dark with thick stone walls either side and it smells old and musty. It’s also quite slippery in places. There’s nowhere to stand and stop for a moment, as other tourists are right behind you as you ascend.
‘Are you OK?’ Demi asks me around halfway up – annoyingly, looking as cool as a cucumber.
‘Fine,’ I say as I take a long glug of my bottled water and think I would actually prefer to poke cocktail sticks in my eyeballs than ever do this again. Why the hell did I suggest it?
Attached to the wall near the top of the tower is a defibrillator machine which reassures and terrifies me in equal measure.
Eventually, we step out onto the crowded viewing tower at the top.
‘Oh wow, look at that!’ exclaims Demi, clapping her hands together, while I lean against the stone wall and breathe.
From the top there’s a breathtaking view of the red-roofed houses on the streets below, fanning out across the city. I snap away with my phone camera and think what a marvellous postcard this would make to send to someone back home. I’m so glad I did the climb as the views in front of me make it all worthwhile.
A while later, after slowly and carefully descending the ancient steps, we head to a piazza for a well-deserved coffee.
The streets are a jumble of old stone buildings with the trademark red roofs and groups of people sitting on benches in crowded squares chatting in the sun.
‘I absolutely love it here,’ I say as we stroll along the cobbled streets. It has a vibrancy that I adore and can understand why Dara has returned here. I find myself looking forward to seeing him again this evening.
As we approach the Piazza Santo Stefano, we happen upon a basilica with a complex of seven different churches. We consider going inside but when Demi takes a look at the queues snaking around the building, we decide to just admire it from outside.
‘I like churches, but when you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all,’ she tells me. ‘Plus, I’m getting hungry.’ Demi is already walking away in search of somewhere to eat.
On Dara’s recommendation, we head to the heart of the student quarter and find the Trattoria Anna Maria, which looks very busy, but thankfully the waitress manages to finds us a table. There are lots of tasty-looking pizzas being delivered to a nearby table and the smell hitting my nostrils almost tempts me to order one. But Demi and I both eventually settle on the speciality of the house, which is a delicious tortellini en brood, a stuffed pasta in a tasty broth, which we wash down with a glass of a local red wine.
‘Oh my, this is just divine,’ I say, savouring every tasty mouthful and Demi nods her head in agreement. The dish was so filling, neither of us have room for a dessert so promise ourselves an ice cream later.
After our leisurely lunch, we walk along the cobbled back streets companionably, discovering little shops selling foodstuffs, with salamis tied in string hanging from shop doorways and bread displayed in baskets outside. We walk past a young woman standing outside a gift shop who offers us a shot of limoncello, which persuades me to head inside and buy a bottle. I feel so happy to be here with Demi, and to be able to give her the opportunity to see her