Leyte (CV 32) - Naval Cruise Book

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LEGHORN (LIVORNO)-NOVEMBER 23-28 WHO can forget the rainy Thanksgiving period that we spent in Leghorn, Italy? Rain storms and rough seas limited liberty to a couple of days, yet almost everyone got ashore for a look at the wonders of Northern Italy. Leghorn, a Nazi stronghold in 1944, took a ter- rific punishment. Ruined buildings and a harbor littered with wrecks reminded us of the furious fight- ing of five years ago. We were anchored about a mile outside the breakwaters; therefore the boat-runs, on the days when we had only six feet swells, were long and rough. Liberty in Leghorn proved about the same as in Messina— souvenirs, cameos, and, of course, vino. Leghorn had a few sig hts of interest so the intel- lectuals took buses to see the famous towns of Pisa and Florence. Be no- One of the more sanitary meat markets Leghorn ' s major point of interest was the Italian Naval Academy. Several hundred Italian naval officers and cadets went out on Friday, November 25 to spend their first day at sea aboard a carrier. They were greatly impressed by the flying and dive bombing of our airdales.

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SHOPPING SPREE, SPAGHETTI STYLE DURING our visits to five Italian ports, we really went all out for shopping. Millions of lira were spent in amassing loot such as oil paintings. cameos, gloves, watches, music boxes and souvenirs of every description. Gibraltar had little to offer, save its excellent tweeds and other cloths. In France you could buy the best of perfumes, but how pretty can you smell? And, of course, such places as Greece, Tripoli and Cyprus were barren, Grecian dolls and statuettes the only worthwhile objects to be found. But Italy eased the gift problem for everyone. Actually, what von couldn ' t find in Italy would be difficult to un- cover in the States. So, in ecstasy, the souvenir sharks swarmed ashore, loaded with lira, to take or be taken. First purchase. The chestnut vender scores again! Check and check again. Good cameos were hard to find. From lamps to oil paintings. All this and more could be had anywhere in Italy. From Leicas to Baby Brownies. Name it and you could have it.

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THE MARBLE MARVELS OF PISA SOME seven miles north of Leghorn lies Pisa, a town made world-famous by its leaning tower. The Leaning Tower was built as a bell tower, adja- cent to Pisa ' s beautiful Cathedral, in 1174 and com- pleted in 1350. Poor foundations caused the edi- fice to lean before the builders had finished the third floor. Today this tower of white marble leans some fifteen feet out of the perpendicular. Many of us climbed the 293 steps to the top gallery. Looking down from here, we felt a sensation of falling over or the feeling that we had one too many. The oblique position of this tower enabled Galileo to make his famous experiments on the law of gravity here. i •••• ' if knew t •iHuutb N..t SHToppeo r 5i« C OCrHftC s The Cathedral, Baptistry, and Campo Santo, along with the famous tower, tell of the glorious past and departed splendor of Pisa. These four buildings were built about 1200 A.D. on what is now called the field of miracles. All four lean to some extent due to their poor foundations. Pisa was once a great seaport, although she is now several miles from the sea. Pisa lost her prosperity and power in wars with the rival cities of Florence and Genoa. Today, her ancient buildings remain a symbol of the profound religious feeling, the love of art, and the spirit of the Middle Ages. 1 I I Where Bambinos Get Their First Bath Jomc of u3 w f on fovrj tor Cuffvrc - Swn .