Pisa

From MaxTravelz

Overview of the Campo dei Miracoli from above. The leaning tower is on the left, the Duomo is in the center and the Baptistery is on the right.

Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Italy with a population of some 90,000 people.

Understand

Pisa is best known for the world famous Leaning Tower, but those who come here with their mind already made up that the Tower is the only thing to see here may miss the other architectural and artistic marvels of this beautiful city.

The long walk from the Campo dei Miracoli to the train station is along a pedestrian mall with many interesting sights, shops, and restaurants.

Pisa is also a quite safe place, you won't need to worry about your things and health (but if you stay in a very cheap hotel take your cameras, laptops etc. with you).

Get in

Pisa has regular trains from and to Florence (usually every half an hour), from and to Lucca (usually every hour) and is also accessible by bus and has an airport.

Pisa Airport "Galileo Galilei" is the main destination in Tuscany and in the central Italy (after Rome), is served by several airlines operating hundred weekly flights to national and international destinations. Numerous companies offer charter flights from and to a number of European and non-European destinations. Fly to Pisa is really cheap and easy: the most important low cost flights companies reach Pisa and the airport is 5 minutes far from the centre of the town by bus, train or taxi. Ryanair is one of the airlines that also have a base in Pisa.

Get around

There are regular buses around town, including from the train station to the Field of Miracles. Attractions are within a half hour walk of each other. Local bus tickets are available at the bus stops at both the airport and train station & Tobacco shops.

See

• The Piazza dei Miracoli or Field of Miracles is to the north of central Pisa and contains its most famous sights:
  • Leaning Tower (Torre Pendente) Originally the cathedral's bell tower, construction began in 1173 and began leaning due to subsidence of the ground underneath it soon after. A project to keep the tower from leaning more and tipping over finally reached a successful conclusion in 2001, and the tower is again open to those wishing to climb it. Climbing the tower requires a reservation based ticket for 15 Euro. Expect 45 minutes to 2 hour wait, but there is lots to see while you wait.
  • Duomo di Pisa, the splendid Cathedral, contains artwork by Giambolna, Dela Robbia, and others
  • Baptistry large round Romanesque dome with more sculptured decorations and a fine view up top; climb this if you want a great view with the Leaning Tower visible in your photos
  • Campo Santo a huge cemetery building with much interesting art, including a collection of ancient Roman sculptures and splendid pre-Renaissance murals by the "Master of the Triumph of Death".
  • Museo del Opera del Duomo has sculptures and paintings formerly in the Pisa Cathedral. Some of the more unusual are bronze griffins from Syria captured by the Crusaders.
  • Museo delle Sinopie Skipped over by many visitors, this museum is a treat for art lovers. After WWII many of the surviving murals and pieces of murals from Pisa's Campo Santo were detached from the walls to try to preserve them. It was unexpectedly discovered that the artist sketches underneath survived. These were moved to this museum.
• Santa Spina small Gothic church built to house a thorn from Jesus's crown
• Piazza dei Cavalieri old town square with a famous elitary school (Scuola Normale Superiore) with elaborate facade
• Lungarno Mediceo
• Museo di San Matteo, piazza San Matteo, 1, lungarno Mediceo Tel. +39 050 541865
• Keith Haring mural

Do

In the middle of June there's a Pisan festival (Luminaria), held for the patronal saint's day (San Ranieri). It consists of sports events, firework shows, and other.

Another summer attraction is the Gioco del Ponte (Game of Bridge), a historical manifestation held yearly for the last Sunday of June, in which the two sides of the city (Tramontana and Mezzogiorno, geographically splitted by the Arno river) participates to a historical procession, with 709 walk-ons, then challenges each other to a physical match in which their teams, each composed by 20 members, try to conquer the "Ponte di Mezzo" (the main bridge in Pisa) pushing a trolley in order to let the rival team out of the bridge itself.

Learn

Pisa is replete with cultural institutions. Of course, learning Italian is a worthwhile activity while in Pisa.

• Istituto Linguistico Mediterrano, www.ilm.it, Via C. Battisti, 3 I-56100 Pisa, tel +39 050 500399, fax +39 050 48157, info@ilm.it. Founded in 1981, was one of the first schools of Italian in Italy and in Tuscany. Offers courses on Italian language for foreigners, semester and summer study abroad programs. Also features intensive courses, individual tutoring, and classes in cooking and art.

Buy

Every two weeks there is a bazaar with quite cheap books, records and old stuff.

Eat

Near the Leaning Tower, in via Roma, there's a very good Indian Restaurant, very cheap, with a beautiful atmosphere and really good dishes. In Piazza dei Miracoli, there's a good restaurant-pizzeria, cheap enough, the Kinzica, and you get good service. Don't miss Salza, in Borgo Stretto, with high prices but absolutely gorgeous chocolate, sweets and candies of all kinds. Don't sit down inside, though, because you end up paying 10 euros for two coffees. As a general rule, try not to eat near the Leaning Tower where prices are high and quality low, on the contrary head to the central area (5 minutes walking frim Piazza dei Miracoli) near the food market: you can find very good and cheap typical restaurants there. Also Via San Martino, next to the south bank of the river, offers some places with good quality and low price. There's a good pizzeria near the Youth Hostel, too, on the road that leads to the Leclerc, on the left then you must go in the tunnel.

Drink

During summer nights, everybody stays around the banks of the rivers, sipping drinks bought from the several bars in the area. A few of very good wine-bar are also available for colder, winter night.

Sleep

Get out

• Lucca. You can travel by train to this other beautiful Tuscan city.