Pisa!
We spent an afternoon in Pisa and had more fun taking the "cheesy tourist" pictures than anything else! The line to climb the tower was a couple hour wait, and we thought why take the chance that it finally tips over when we are on it, so we decided lunch sounded better. A short history lesson and then you can look at the pictures.
The area where the tower sits is called the Field of Miracles (Campo dei Miracoli) and is made up of four large white buildings which are Pisa's religious center--the cathedral (or Duomo), it's bell tower (the Leaning Tower), Baptistery, and Camposanto Cemetery. The buildings share similar building materials, similar decoration, and a tendency toward circular designs. Theologically, the buildings mark the main events of every Pisan's life: christened in the Baptistery, married in the Duomo, honored in ceremonies at the Tower, and buried in the Camposanto. Now, for the really good stuff, the Tower! It is nearly 200 feet tall and 55 feet wide, weighing 14,ooo tons and leaning at an 85 - degree angle (15 feet off the vertical axis). It started to lean almost immediately after construction began. The Tower was built over two centuries by at least three different architects. Each architect tried to "correct" the problem of the leaning. The first stones were laid in 1173. Five years later when they finished the base and first arcade, someone said, "Is it just me, or does that look crooked?" (I don't know if someone really said that, but it sounded good!) The heavy Tower rested on a shallow 13-foot foundation and was sinking on the south side into the marshy soil. They worked on it anyway and built the first four stories. Construction halted (no one knows why) and for a century the Tower sat half-finished and visibly leaning. Around 1272, the next architect continued, trying to correct the problem by angling the next three stories backward. Then the project sat (mysteriously) idle for nearly another century. Finally, the last architect put the belfry on the top (1350-1372), also kinking it backward. Several attempts have been made to stop it's slow-motion fall. The base was reinforced in 1550 and it actually worked, but in 1838, well-intentioned engineers pumped out ground water, destabilizing the Tower, causing it to fall at a rate of a millimeter a year! It got so bad that, in 1990, it was closed for repairs. Thirty million dollars were spent to stabilize the Tower. After several attempts, with little success, a breakthrough finally came when they drilled 15-foot holes in the ground on the north side and sucked out sixty tons of soil, allowing the Tower to sink on the north side. The Tower has actually been straightened by about six inches, turning the clock back 200 years on the still leaning (and they say probably still falling) Tower. Lesson over!
The pictures are out of order but show us taking the "cheesy tourist stuff" and then just different angles and closeups of the four buildings. Enjoy your trip to Pisa!
This picture shows the base on the north side. The next picture shows the base on the south side and it is easy to see how much more it sinks in.
The area where the tower sits is called the Field of Miracles (Campo dei Miracoli) and is made up of four large white buildings which are Pisa's religious center--the cathedral (or Duomo), it's bell tower (the Leaning Tower), Baptistery, and Camposanto Cemetery. The buildings share similar building materials, similar decoration, and a tendency toward circular designs. Theologically, the buildings mark the main events of every Pisan's life: christened in the Baptistery, married in the Duomo, honored in ceremonies at the Tower, and buried in the Camposanto. Now, for the really good stuff, the Tower! It is nearly 200 feet tall and 55 feet wide, weighing 14,ooo tons and leaning at an 85 - degree angle (15 feet off the vertical axis). It started to lean almost immediately after construction began. The Tower was built over two centuries by at least three different architects. Each architect tried to "correct" the problem of the leaning. The first stones were laid in 1173. Five years later when they finished the base and first arcade, someone said, "Is it just me, or does that look crooked?" (I don't know if someone really said that, but it sounded good!) The heavy Tower rested on a shallow 13-foot foundation and was sinking on the south side into the marshy soil. They worked on it anyway and built the first four stories. Construction halted (no one knows why) and for a century the Tower sat half-finished and visibly leaning. Around 1272, the next architect continued, trying to correct the problem by angling the next three stories backward. Then the project sat (mysteriously) idle for nearly another century. Finally, the last architect put the belfry on the top (1350-1372), also kinking it backward. Several attempts have been made to stop it's slow-motion fall. The base was reinforced in 1550 and it actually worked, but in 1838, well-intentioned engineers pumped out ground water, destabilizing the Tower, causing it to fall at a rate of a millimeter a year! It got so bad that, in 1990, it was closed for repairs. Thirty million dollars were spent to stabilize the Tower. After several attempts, with little success, a breakthrough finally came when they drilled 15-foot holes in the ground on the north side and sucked out sixty tons of soil, allowing the Tower to sink on the north side. The Tower has actually been straightened by about six inches, turning the clock back 200 years on the still leaning (and they say probably still falling) Tower. Lesson over!
The pictures are out of order but show us taking the "cheesy tourist stuff" and then just different angles and closeups of the four buildings. Enjoy your trip to Pisa!
This picture shows the base on the north side. The next picture shows the base on the south side and it is easy to see how much more it sinks in.
posted by Kathy at 3:19 PM
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