Tuesday 20th June 2023

Piazza dei Miracoli : Leaning Tower of Pisa :Piazza Dei Cavalieri : Fontana Del Porcellino : The Three Tenors Show

Today, we are going to Pisa for the day, our train tickets are booked and our train departs at 8.53am, we will arrive in Pisa just over one hour later.

On the walk to the station, we stopped to take a photo of the Santa Novella Maria Church which is on our list to visit.

A sign states that part of the church is closed due to restoration.

We may, therefore give it a miss, we have quite a few places still on our list and we won’t have time to visit them all.

Our seats were on the top deck of a double decker train and the journey soon passed with pretty scenery along the away.

As we walked through Pisa, in the direction of the leaning tower, we commented on the various beautiful buildings, protruding stone carved balconies and quaint narrow streets.

Within just 30 minutes after arriving at the railway station and crossing the River Arno, the imposing white marbled Cattedrale di Pisa came into view.

The Piazza dei Miracoli, (the Square of Miracles) was so named due to the fact that all of the buildings within the so called square lean to some degree or another.

While we were queuing for tickets, a guide was chatting about the renovations to the Leaning Tower of Pisa in recent years.  “We didn’t make it straight, we are not stupid, what would we do with a straight tower?’ he laughed.

The façade of the cathedral is extremely impressive; it has four rows of loggias.

Like everyone else, we had fun attempting to take photos of each other ‘supporting’ the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

 

 

 

The cathedral’s interior is remarkable.

It has an elliptical dome and is richly decorated.

Its polygonal pulpit is an Italian work of art which survived a fire in the late 16th century.

 

Leaving the Square of Miracles behind, we wandered once again through the city’s streets.  After a while, we decided to have lunch and chose a small trattoria on a busy pedestrian street where we could people watch.

Prices are considerably cheaper here than in Florence which we find to be expensive. After our delicious meal of bruschetta and pasta, we started to slowly head back in the general direction of the station.

Wandering aimlessly we came across a square named Piazza Dei Cavaliera which had interesting architecture.  Later I learnt that the historical square (The Knight’s Square) was the city’s political centre in times gone by.

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the one hours journey back to Florence, we went to the local supermarket to pick up supplies for supper before returning to our apartment.

Later we walked along the river to the Auditorium Santo Stefano and swapped our paper receipt for our official tickets for the show later in the evening.

Then we went into the Piazza Del Mercato Nuovo, where the daily market was in the midst of closing. We spotted the Fontana Del Porcellino, a small fountain with a bronze statue of a boar.

This is a copy of the original 17th century Baroque statue which is now an exhibit in one of the city’s many museums.

As is the custom, we popped a coin in the fountain and stroked the boar’s snout.  The nose is now shiny from constant caresses.

This gesture will, according to local legend, ensure our return to the city.

Then we went into the nearby Piazza Della Signoria and enjoyed a cocktail while people watching and admiring the square’s architecture.

Men were pushing bespoke wooden barrows through the square, with the stalls of the market inside

Just a short walk and we were back at the Auditorium Santo Stefano for a two hour opera and classical music show.  The ‘Three Tenors’ play twice weekly at the venue

The ‘auditorium’ is a catholic church with Romanesque Architecture.

The usherette showed us to the rows of seats from which we could choose.  Our choice was seats at the back which we could move to improve our view.

The show was enjoyable; there was also an unexpected short ballet performance.  Due to the positioning of our seats, it was easy to stand up and move to the centre of the auditorium to watch the Ballet.

After the show, we returned to our apartment.

 

 

Previous                    Next