March 15, 2019
This was our last day in the western part of Tuscany, so it made sense to visit both Pisa and Lucca today. We located and walked to the Montecatini Terme train station, it was about half the distance that we'd been walking to Centrale.
The train rides were simpler and shorter today. There was a direct train to Pisa Centrale, our first destination.
Greeting us in Pisa was a statue of Vittorio Emmanuel II. He was King of Sardinia from 1849 to March 1861. At that point, he assumed the title of King of Italy. He was the first king of a united Italy since the 6th century.
The next sight was a memorial to Giuseppe Mazzini, a politician who was instrumental in the unification of Italy in the same time period.
Another historical figure is named in this shot, but for more trivial usage. This is the only Indian restaurant I recall seeing on our trip.
Pisa lacked some of the charm we'd seen in other places.
The Santa Maria della Spina church was an exception, it was built in the 1300's.
Finally we reached the Leaning Tower and took the requisite photos.
The tower looks straighter behind Edith, I must have subconsciously corrected the angle.
Armed soldiers were a common sight in many of the cities we visited.
The Tower, Baptistery and Cathedral are all parts of the Square of Miracles. It was designated as a Unesco World Heritage site in 1987.
Like Cinque Terre, the Leaning Tower attracts a lot of young people. The cell phone cameras really get a workout as they try for photos creating the illusion of the tower between their fingers.
Another attraction is the Cherub statue, which from some perspectives appears to be in attached to the tower.
And finally, another world list life bird, the Hooded Crow. This is #8 on my World list. They're not as commonly seen as crows are here, but I did see them in Rome and other cities on the trip.
We had a lunch and a coffee and returned to the train station to travel to Lucca.
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