While most people like to start their travel recaps with their best places visited and moving experiences, I would like to begin mine with the flawed. One word to describe: Pisa.
Pisa was never in my plan to visit. Had the flight schedules to Florence match my not-very-flexible holiday plan I would have taken it. However it was not the case. I had no choice but to take my flight to Florence via Pisa.
The River Arno in Pisa and the little church that stands out, even during a grey morning, La Chiesa di Santa Maria della Spina built in 1230 by the river bank of Arno.
Map of Italy. Pisa is part of Tuscany region. Check out where Pisa is in the map.
I arrived in Pisa just right after lunch. I told myself – I won’t tarry, and will quickly hop on the next train out of the airport to Pisa Centrale then get the connection to Florence. The train ride including connection will take me about an hour and a few minutes. Not bad, I reckon. One-way Pisa-Florence fare is €5.20. So cheap!
If you travel by train in Italy, please make sure your tickets are validated by the stamping machine, else you get a fine of €15, I think. Train tickets in Italy are issued for a period of time, say 14 April to 14 May, that’s why validation of tickets before boarding the train is a requisite.
It took some time for the bags from our aircraft to arrive in the baggage arrival hall, so I went to the nearby vending machine to buy some water. I realized I was thirsty. A bottle of water will cost me a euro it said. Took a euro coin and inserted it into the slit opening. Pressed a couple of buttons and waited for the bottle of water to drop into the bin. But it didn’t. So I pressed the button again, and again, harder this time, and again… but.still.nothing. Nothing!
The Campo dei Miracoli. The Santa Maria Assunta church began contruction in 1064, the Bapitestery in 1153, the leaning tower in 1173, and later the Camposanto in 1278. There were many black men touting goods from childrens toys to mens belt and Rolexes.
Needless to say, I banged the vending machine with my fist (blag!) –some vending machines need a shake before they work, but still nothing happened. So I banged my fist again (blag!) a couple of times (blag! blag!) and harder while cursing under my breath. Other passengers were already eyeing me with curiosity but helaas no one offered to lend me a hand, which is typically European – they mind their own business. If I was in the US, an American would have come up to me, asked what happened and offered the damsel in distress some help. Well, cultural differences, I’d say.
Seeing that my red luggage just arrived, there is nothing really left for me to stay and keep my fists banging on the dead machine. I gave up. Being a frugal person, I felt someone just tricked me with €100 instead of €1. I left the vending machine with a dried throat (I am thirsty!) and a broken heart. *sob*
People-tourists, bikes, cafes, shops, statues in the Campo dei Miracoli.
“Excuse me miss, can I see your passport?â€
I stopped, quite puzzled and looked at the man blocking my way, “Huh?â€
“Ma’am, your passport please…†“Are you here for business?†the police said.
My satirical mind was running wild –what business travel does this idiot mean? It’s Easter, hello!?
After quickly scanning the first page of my passport, he let me go and wished me happy travels in Italy.
But, I was wondering why he stopped me. Is it because I looked foreign than the rest of the very pale Dutch passengers? Do I look like a businesswoman with hidden motives? Was he flirting? Italian men by the way are known for being bigtime flirts and are too damn assertive, oh la-la, ha-ha. Or, perhaps, he saw me whacking the vending machine earlier?
I quickly got out of the airport to Pisa Centrale and was on the train bound for Florence. I will talk about Florence and Siena another time, so I will skip a bit some travel pieces in my story and jump to my last day in Bella Italia, again in Pisa.
Ah, my favorite foto in Pisa, the bronze door – Portale di San Ranieri built in 1180. These 2 women are friends, perhaps relatives and I was quick enough to grab a shot of them like this, lol! 2nd foto is the leaning tower of Pisa again. Specifications are: 55 meter in height, weighing about 14.453 tons, with 297 steps and inclined at about 10%. 3rd foto is the medieval gate of Campo dei Miracoli. If you look closely, you can see a part of the church and the leaning tower through.
A nice and practical service most train stations offer nowadays is the baggage deposit. In Pisa Centrale Stazioni, you can deposit your baggage for €3 equivalent to I think 15 hours, if not less. I didn’t really bother to remember for how many hours was it because I only planned to spend 2-3 hours in Pisa before I catch my afternoon flight to Amsterdam.
My Dutch in-laws who always supplied me with reading and guide armors during my Euro trips, lent me 2 travel books, one about Tuscany & Florence and the other about Italy in general, and of course a map. With the map and book –opened in the Pisa section in my hand, I set off to the city center of Pisa. The signs were clear. I just have to follow them.
I crossed the Arno River that flows from Mount Falterona in the Apennines towards Arezzo, Florence, Empoli, and down to Pisa exiting into the Tyrrhenian Sea. Although it was quite misty and grayish that morning, the view of Arno River from the bridge where I stood and the old buildings flanking the stream was simply gorgeous. The view reminds me quite of Paris, but perhaps more reminiscent as its rustic and medieval sister. It makes me want to stand there all hour long.
The frieze detail above the door of the Santa Maria Assunta church, and horse-drawn carriages in the grounds of the Miracoli square with the dome-style Baptistery (on the left) and Santa Maria Assunta church in the background.
Pisa Centrale Stazioni [Pisa Central Station]. Next foto is taken during the plane lift. Have a close look and find out where the Campo dei Miracoli is!
Finally, I arrived in Campo dei Miracoli and was greeted by a strong current of bodies moving from all directions. There are so many people everywhere, and they keep coming! The walk from Pisa Centrale station to the center where the Campo dei Miracoli is located took roughly 15-20 minutes.
The Campo dei Miracoli is a huge square where the church Santa Maria Assunta, Baptistery, the Leaning Tower, and the Camposanto are located. In 1987 the whole square was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The square also houses a museum nearby, and in its periphery you will see many bars, café restaurants, shops and hotels.
I’d like to say, and believe, that in all of Pisa, this is what there really is to see and where everybody flocks to. Mainly because of what the city of Pisa is widely known for in the world — its leaning tower. I think it’s even said that the leaning tower of Pisa is one of the 7 wonders of the medieval world?
Yeah, the Campo dei Miracoli where the leaning tower is standing, and perhaps the Arno River and the La Chiesa di Santa Maria della Spina is all of Pisa. Kind of like a tourist trap. Reason why to begin with that I didn’t want to take my flight via Pisa and wanted a direct one to Florence.
My advice: If you really want to visit Pisa, give it just half a day and I am quite sure you are just about done with it.