Left Paris in the evening & reach Pisa at 8 nightish. Took a bus to town. It's such a small quiet town. Told the kind bus driver the Hostel name & he stopped at the junction nearest to the hostel & drop us. ahh.... I heart pisaian (ada ini word ka?).
Checked in & it was the nicest & cleanest hostel of the 3 cities. Was feeling hungry so braved the rain & searched for food. Now the cheapest 8 euro (RM40) umbrella I can find in Paris comes in handy.
Although I went against the travel guide of not goin into any eatery near the tower as it's more expensive but we kinda stumble upon the tower & it's the only eatery still open hahahah and it's only 9pm.
I had Tortellini. It's a kind of pasta but wrap with meat. Taste OK lar .. creamy enough for me. At least I've tasted a good pasta in Italy (still sigh *haaaii* when thinking about Rome's yucky pasta).
Time to rejuvenate as I plan to cover as much ground as possible tomolo morning & pray that it don't rain. Thank you god for loving me. I open my eyes to a not so sunny but beautiful morning.
The pretty petals by the roadside cafe on the way to the most beautiful squares in the world.
A statue of kids forms the top of a public water faucet near tower.
Time to rejuvenate as I plan to cover as much ground as possible tomolo morning & pray that it don't rain. Thank you god for loving me. I open my eyes to a not so sunny but beautiful morning.The pretty petals by the roadside cafe on the way to the most beautiful squares in the world.
A statue of kids forms the top of a public water faucet near tower.
There are 4 impressive buildings all located on "Campo dei Miracoli" (square of miracles): the Basilica di Santa Maria Assunta, the Campanile, the Baptistry and the Camposanto cemetery.
Looking up the Campanile, leaning tower that was actually a bell tower (haha just wanted a different angle from the postcard photo).
Close up of the Leaning Tower's base. Noticed the sinking side??
Detail of the top of the leaning tower:
Everyone tends to focus on the tower but they shouldn't - there's still a magnificent church and baptistery right next to it.
The Duomo (Basilica di Santa Maria Assunta)'s façade consists of four levels of open galleries:
1 of the 4 evangelists sit on the corners of the facade:
The mosaic above the central doorway is the Virgin Mary by Guiseppe Modena de Lucca:
The delicate carvings on the marble columns:
The doors feature bronze reliefs from the late 16th Century:
See the Baptistry (looks like a huge delicious "baci" chocolate) . It was built from 1152 to 1284. During this era, custom stated that a child could not enter a church until they were baptized. Therefore. many cathedrals of this time would have a separate baptistry constructed.
Looking up the Campanile, leaning tower that was actually a bell tower (haha just wanted a different angle from the postcard photo).
Close up of the Leaning Tower's base. Noticed the sinking side??
Detail of the top of the leaning tower:
Everyone tends to focus on the tower but they shouldn't - there's still a magnificent church and baptistery right next to it.
The Duomo (Basilica di Santa Maria Assunta)'s façade consists of four levels of open galleries:
1 of the 4 evangelists sit on the corners of the facade:
The mosaic above the central doorway is the Virgin Mary by Guiseppe Modena de Lucca:
The delicate carvings on the marble columns:
The doors feature bronze reliefs from the late 16th Century:
See the Baptistry (looks like a huge delicious "baci" chocolate) . It was built from 1152 to 1284. During this era, custom stated that a child could not enter a church until they were baptized. Therefore. many cathedrals of this time would have a separate baptistry constructed.
It is carved with lively scenes from the Life of Christ:
It's topped with a statue of St John the Baptist to whom it is dedicated:
From outside the Camposanto (cemetery) has almost NO decorations at all, with only one great exception : The entrance is surmounted by a splendid Gothic tabernacle, enriched by tracery and pinnacles and with a sculptural group of the Virgin and Child with Saints and a kneeling figure.
I tried a lot of poses with the leaning tower, but failed miserably:
From left to right, Camposanto (the plain wall behind), the Baptistery , the Basilica & the most famous Campanile (Leaning tower).
Just a random shot. I like the cute bell with a rosak punya clock.
Walk by foot toward the city centre, admiring buildings with the typical Italian flair, churches etc ... and very impressive parking skills of Italians. Cars are park at winding & narrow road.
That's not all, see how much SPACE between 2 cars, I ish SALUTE.
Saw a nicely decorated cafe & hop in for breakfast. Tried the Italian Crepes, no doubt ordered chocolate flavor & a cup of Cappuccino. No complaints. It's sweet & yummylicious.
I can't remember the sequence of places & churches that we passed by. I'll start with San Sisto Church (11th century): this is one of the oldest churches in Pisa and inside a piece of the Koran is preserved
The Piazza dei Cavalieri (Knights’ Square). An old town square.
At the centre are stalls selling antics, paintings, books, wine glasses & kawaii CATS!!
This square is home to one of Pisa University's most prestigious colleges: the Scuola Normale Superiore. Currently it has a beautiful facade completely covered with scaffolding and plastic sheeting (look behind the statue). So disappointed lar. In front of the palazzo stands the statue of Cosimo I de Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany.
Another remarkable building is the Palazzo dell'Orologio (the Palace of the Clock), two separate medieval towers joined together by adding an arch.
Here lies the church of Santo Stephano dei Cavalieri (The church of the knights).
Walking along the streets we stumbled upon more churches.Chiesa di Santa Marie del Carmine at Corso Italia. Statues of St. Paul and St. John the Baptist are on the facade. The statue standing in front is the sculptor Nicola Pisano.
The next church we find is on Borgo Stretto, Chiesa di Santa Michele.
Since it's Christmas period, a little square in Borgo Stretto hosts a Christmas Market *yay*. Bought X-mas decor for relatives.
Skydiving Santa Clause :) See the cute parachute cute kan.
Pisa Flea Market, a place with great finds & bargains.
Betty Boop for sale in the flea market:
A street artist doin his magic:
The River Arno... It is big and quiet (NO boats at all)... Its a lovely setting, the way it slips around the town very elegantly and divides Pisa into two areas: Mezzogiorno to the south and Tramontana to the north. I just love this photo:
The Arno River runs through Pisa, and is lined with grand old buildings. This beautiful building is one of the oldest and best preserved in Pisa. The building is made of terracotta and decorated with Gothic motifs. This 14th century building is interesting for several reasons, among which the fact that is leaning.
Walked cross the centre bridge. On the other side of the bridge was Piazza Garibaldi, which naturally has a statue of Garibaldi la duh.
From a far, couldn't help but notice this church by the river bank, Santa Maria della Spina. The name Spina (thorn) derives from the fact that a thorn from the crown of Jesus has been preserved here. The spiked turrets on the church roof commemorate the relic.
The Guelph Tower of the old Citadel, saw this while walking along the river bank.
Exploring the city until the very last minute, then 'kam guan' rushed back to the hostel to checked out.. haha.. every city also like that.. lucky din miss any flight.Photo on the left showed my tu lan face as the bus (to airport) still did not turned up after waiting like for centuries.
Had a great time and was glad a visit to Pisa was squeezed in.
Pisa is a pretty, compact town that is a delight to explore on foot, with quaint, buzzing markets, hidden treasures, narrow streets and the ambiance of “old Italy”.
