Palm Sunday as Eco Warrior and Beach Comber

 Palm Sunday was a lovely sunny day in Tuscany.  But I did not know that of course when the alarm went off at 5.20 and I stumbled out on the dark empty streets of Siena to board the bus to Colle di Val d'Elsa, where I met Caterina -in front in the picture above- who drove us to the little town of Cecina, in the Province of Livorno on the coast. 

I had decided to join her little group of  eco warriors https://www.plasticfreeonlus.it/ who wants to free the world of Plastic. We, however, contented ourselves this morning with the more modest task of freeing three parking lots in this small town of its plastic and other rubbish- it is quite surprising how much stuff can be collected in just a couple of hours- as the harvest above shows.

                                        

After the morning's effort Caterina and I felt we deserved some seaside fun- in the shape of a stroll along the beach, from which you can see the islands of Gorgona and Capraia.  Although the nights and mornings are still really quite cold here, as soon as the sun comes out it is glorious and warm. We saw only one intrepid swimmer,  while many people were snoozing in the sun and  getting ready for summer...

The beach at Cecina Mare is covered with strange , stripey, flat stones, and I was trying to figure out what I could possibly do with them- could they become a bathrooom floor perhaps? Or even the walls?
 

We then had Campari Spritz at  Da Antonio a Mare, right on the beach, followed by lovely seafood- I had Octopus and Caterina  had Mussels.  Polpo and Cozze,

Once back in Siena, I stopped in the Campo, which was covered with happy  people enjoying  the last afternoon sun of this glorious Palm Sunday.