There is the Andrew family of 4, one son and daughter, pub business. All 4 good in beer and wine drinking and die hard internet fanatics. Whenever, wherever there are chances of wifi, or got wifi, looking at them you will know.
The family of 3 - mom, mother with daughter and son and the 2nd family of 3 - couple, this time couple with mother.
Then there is the sisters, one Indian and one Chinese.
And finally our couple...hehehe
Day 4 - 4 Nov 2013
Normal routine, waked up early and time to move out....This time we will be visiting the famous not straight building !!! Hahaha
The original itinerary was to visit Florence then to the famous not straight building..If you followed my blog, Florence was already done on Day 3....Hence the itinerary was abit screwed up now...
A - Hotel The Gate
B - Pisa - Piazza Dei Miracoli
C - Siena
D - Hotel Palace 2000
Along the way to Pisa, can see alot of small bushes like plantations....
Finally we reached the place called Pisa, need to park and take another transport to the Piazza Dei Miracoli.
The Piazza del Duomo ("Cathedral Square") is a wide, walled area to the north of central Pisa, Tuscany, Italy, recognized as one of the main centers for medieval art in the world. It is a sacred area of Roman Catholicism, and it is dominated by four great sacred edifices: the Duomo (cathedral), the Campanile (the cathedral's free standing bell tower), the Baptistry and the Campo Santo
(the monumental graveyard). Partly paved and partly grassed, it hosts
also other buildings such as the old hospital (now in part the Museum of Sinopias) and the Museum of the "Opera del Duomo" (the Cathedral Square museum].
It is otherwise known as Piazza dei Miracoli ("Square of Miracles"). This name was created by the Italian writer and poet Gabriele d'Annunzio who, in his novel Forse che sì forse che no (1910) described the square in this way:
Often people tend to mistake the term with Campo dei Miracoli ("Field of Miracles"). This one is a fictional magical field in the book Pinocchio, where a gold coin seed will grow a money tree.
In 1987 the whole square was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Lizzy's signature move
Pisa Baptistery
The Campo Santo, also known as camposanto monumentale ("monumental cemetery") or camposanto vecchio ("old cemetery"), lies at the northern edge of the Square. It is a walled cemetery,
which many claim is the most beautiful cemetery in the world. It is
said to have been built around a shipload of sacred soil from Golgotha,
brought back to Pisa from the Fourth Crusade by Ubaldo de' Lanfranchi, archbishop of Pisa in the 12th century, hence the name "Campo Santo" (Holy Field), then "Camposanto".
Some more pix before we set-off to Siena
As usual, parking a distance from the city heart and we need to walk there, along the way, walls of fortification can be seen
In the distance Siena Cathedral
Here we cam see the Basilica of San Domenico on the left and right the Cathedral
Basilica of San Domenico
The easy way into the city
Lunch time, Rosetta (Vege without any meat), a small cafe just on the right from the entrance into the city
After lunch, we went into the city via the Basilica of San Domenico path, the up and down slopes
Water area
Seems the locals like flowers hanging out...
Very narrow road
After much walking, we reached the top and the views were spectacular
More walking
These can be found thru'out the city, for securing horses or carriages
The Fonte Gaia
("Fountain of Joy") was built in 1419 as an endpoint of the system of
conduits bringing water to the city's centre, replacing an earlier
fountain completed about 1342 when the water conduits were completed.
Under the direction of the Committee of Nine, many miles of tunnels were
constructed to bring water in aqueducts to fountains and thence to
drain to the surrounding fields.
The twice-a-year horse-race, Palio di Siena, is held around the edges of the piazza.
The Palio di Siena (known locally simply as Il Palio) is a horse race that is held twice each year, on July 2 and August 16, in Siena, Italy. Ten horses and riders, bareback and dressed in the appropriate colours, represent ten of the seventeen contrade, or city wards. The Palio held on July 2 is named Palio di Provenzano, in honour of the Madonna of Provenzano, who has a church in Siena. The Palio held on August 16 is named Palio dell'Assunta, in honour of the Assumption of Mary.
Then there is the sisters, one Indian and one Chinese.
And finally our couple...hehehe
Day 4 - 4 Nov 2013
Normal routine, waked up early and time to move out....This time we will be visiting the famous not straight building !!! Hahaha
The original itinerary was to visit Florence then to the famous not straight building..If you followed my blog, Florence was already done on Day 3....Hence the itinerary was abit screwed up now...
B - Pisa - Piazza Dei Miracoli
C - Siena
D - Hotel Palace 2000
Along the way to Pisa, can see alot of small bushes like plantations....
Finally we reached the place called Pisa, need to park and take another transport to the Piazza Dei Miracoli.
Our transport
Still need to walk abit to the place, along the way can see alot of shops selling souvenirs.
It is otherwise known as Piazza dei Miracoli ("Square of Miracles"). This name was created by the Italian writer and poet Gabriele d'Annunzio who, in his novel Forse che sì forse che no (1910) described the square in this way:
L’Ardea roteò nel cielo di Cristo, sul prato dei Miracoli.which means: "The Ardea rotated over the sky of Christ, over the meadow of Miracles."
Often people tend to mistake the term with Campo dei Miracoli ("Field of Miracles"). This one is a fictional magical field in the book Pinocchio, where a gold coin seed will grow a money tree.
In 1987 the whole square was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Duomo of the Archdiocese of Pisa
The heart of the Piazza del Duomo is the Duomo, the medieval cathedral of the Archdiocese of Pisa,
entitled to Santa Maria Assunta (St. Mary of the Assumption). This is a
five-naved cathedral with a three-naved transept. The church is known
also as the Primatial, the archbishop of Pisa being a Primate since 1092.
The Baptistery, dedicated to St. John the Baptist, stands opposite
the west end of the Duomo. The round Romanesque building was begun in
the mid 12th century: 1153 Mense August fundata fuit haec ("In the month of August 1153 was set up here..."). It was built in Romanesque style by an architect known as Diotisalvi ("God Save You"), who worked also in the church of the Holy Sepulchre in the city. His name is mentioned on a pillar inside, as Diotosalvi magister. the construction was not, however, finished until the 14th century, when the loggia, the top storey and the dome were added in Gothic style by Nicola Pisano and Giovanni Pisano.
Details of the door
It is the largest baptistery
in Italy. Its circumference measures 107.25 m. Taking into account the
statue of St. John the Baptist (attributed to Turino di Sano) on top of
the dome, it is even a few centimetres higher than the Leaning Tower.
Five years after construction began,
when the building had reached the third floor level, the weak subsoil
and poor foundation led to the building sinking on its south side. The
building was left for a century, which allowed the subsoil to stabilise
itself and prevented the building from collapsing.
In 1272, to adjust
the lean of the building, when construction resumed, the upper floors
were built with one side taller than the other. The seventh and final
floor was added in 1319. By the time the building was completed, the
lean was approximately 1 degree, or 2.5 feet (80 cm) from vertical. At
its greatest, measured prior to 1990, the lean measured approximately
5.5 degrees. As of 2010, this has been reduced to approximately 4
degrees.
The tower stands approximately 60m high, and was built to accommodate a total of seven main bells.
The leaning tower
The campanile (bell tower)
is located behind the cathedral. The last of the three major buildings
on the piazza to be built, construction of the bell tower began in 1173
and took place in three stages over the course of 177 years, with the
bell-chamber only added in 1372.
Pushing it down
The top can be visited, the pix shows tourist on top
Place to get the tickets to go to the top, for details --> http://boxoffice.opapisa.it/Turisti/
The Camposanto
Next stop, the beautiful city of Siena. Siena is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena.
The historic centre of Siena has been declared by UNESCO a World Heritage Site.
After much walking, we reached the top and the views were spectacular
Siena Cathedral (Italian: Duomo di Siena) is a medieval church in Siena, Italy, dedicated from its earliest days as a Roman Catholic Marian church, and now dedicated to Santa Maria Assunta (Holy Mary, Our Lady of the Assumption).
Partial completed walls that were supposed to be the extension of the cathedral
The white stones were the pillar expansion of the cathedral that was to be built until the black plague which halted the expansion.
The cathedral itself was originally designed and completed between
1215 and 1263 on the site of an earlier structure. It has the form of a
Latin cross with a slightly projecting transept, a dome and a bell
tower. The dome rises from a hexagonal base with supporting columns. The
lantern atop the dome was added by Gian Lorenzo Bernini.
The nave is separated from the two aisles by semicircular arches.
Legend has it that the city was
founded by Remus’ sons Senius and Aschius who stole the statue of the
she-wolf from Apollo’s temple. Senius rode a black horse, Aschius a
white steed. Those colours form the city’s heraldic colour scheme black
and white while the city emblem is the same as Rome – the she-wolf and
breast-feeding twins.
In reality the city was founded in the Etruscan age and later developed by the Romans as a military post called Saena Julia
during the reign of Octavian Augustus. The city almost certainly owes
its position on a hilltop to the Etruscan system of settling on hills.
The
exterior and interior are constructed of white and greenish-black marble
in alternating stripes, with addition of red marble on the façade.
Black and white are the symbolic colors of Siena, etiologically linked to black and white horses of the legendary city's founders, Senius and Aschius.
Police station
Piazza del Campo
Piazza del Campo is the principal public space of the historic center of Siena, Tuscany, Italy
and is regarded as one of Europe's greatest medieval squares. It is
renowned worldwide for its beauty and architectural integrity. The Palazzo Pubblico and its Torre del Mangia, as well as various palazzi signorili surround the shell-shaped piazza. At the northwest edge is the Fonte Gaia.
The seventeen contrade
Blocks within the city have their contrade displayed on the wall
The Palio di Siena (known locally simply as Il Palio) is a horse race that is held twice each year, on July 2 and August 16, in Siena, Italy. Ten horses and riders, bareback and dressed in the appropriate colours, represent ten of the seventeen contrade, or city wards. The Palio held on July 2 is named Palio di Provenzano, in honour of the Madonna of Provenzano, who has a church in Siena. The Palio held on August 16 is named Palio dell'Assunta, in honour of the Assumption of Mary.
A few more pixs before we leave the city
The Basilica of San Domenico, also known as Basilica Cateriniana, is a basilica church in Siena, Tuscany, Italy, one of the most important in the city.
We went into the Basilica as the tour manager told us that the head of St.
Catherine is housed inside, as no photo taking was allowed, I am not
able to show the interior.
The
church was begun in 1226-1265, but was enlarged in the 14th century to
the Gothic appearance it has now. It is a large edifice built, like many
contemporary edifice of the mendicant orders,
in bricks, with a lofty bell tower on the left (this was reduced in
height after an earthquake in 1798). The interior is on the Egyptian
cross plan with a huge nave covered by trusses and with a transept
featuring high chapels.
The church contains several relics of St. Catherine of Siena, whose family house is nearby.
Finally, after the church, it was time to leave for Rome.....
By the time we reached the hotel, it was pretty late, dinner for tonight will be on us as Ken our tour manager explained that tomorrow lunch will be included, hence swapping out tonight's dinner.
The cafe by the hotel was a small joint and the waiter totally could not understand us and it needed the chef to come out to take out order.
My wife ordered beef steak while I ordered chicken chop which turned into pork chop.....The beef steak was like all bloody and quite rare which my wife totally disliked while my pork chop still edible but abit tough. All in all, spent $30+ Euro for a non-fulfilling dinner, should have taken our cup noodles !!!
Hotel Palace 2000, not in the list again, but this time got balcony !!! Like got used right....
As usual, extra bed with 2 toilet bowls
What we found !
And that's for day 4
