We had the most wonderful and romantic day – just right for a honeymoon! The day was sunny and bright, so we threw out the guidebook and decided to see where the day took us.

Lucca is surrounded by a fortress, with very thick walls around the entire city. From above, it literally looks like a fort with pentagon-shaped outcroppings on all sides, so the early Luccans could keep watch. Nowadays, there is a road that runs along the perimeter on top of the walls, and the outcroppings are parks. It is lovely.

We decided on a picnic on top of the walls. We found the local alimentari (deli) and selected picnic-size portions of prosciutto, hard parmesan, olives, and right-from-the-oven focaccia bread. They even had a half-bottle of wine, which they opened for us and gave us plastic cups. So our picnic was set.

Next, we found the bike rental, stowed our lunch in the wooden baskets on front, and wound through the streets to find the opening to the wall.

There are ramps all along the wall for access, so we pumped up the hill and were on top. A beautiful view. It is 3 miles all the way around, with benches, parks, and even a couple of restaurants along the way.

We did one loop and then found the perfect spot – shady and in a field of wildflowers. We laid out our picnic and just enjoyed the sunshine and scenery on this most perfect day.