Back to the Mediterranean!

Our next stop was Florence and Pisa. Pisa was absolutely amazing! The "Leaning Tower of Pisa" is actually just one of three impressive buildings in the "Field of Miracles." The plan of the residents of Pisa was to create their own Holy City. The bell tower (the leaning tower), a baptistery and a cathedral were unfortunately built on the unstable soil of this former port city. According to our tour guide, after the first three levels were complete, the tower began to "tilt." Instead of trying to fix it or tear it down and rebuild on more stable land, the builder of the the tower, Bonanno Pisano, left town! He didn't return until shortly before his death. He is buried at the base of the tower.



The Baptistery was modeled after the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.



Florence is a magnificent city! The Italians call it "Firenze," which means the flowering city. The Medici family was a very rich family that had a real love of art. They commissioned work from such artists as Michelangelo, Donatello (not the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle) and the poet Dante. Probably the most famous work of art in Florence is Michelangelo's David. But, Rod and I fell in love with the church of Santa Croce that holds the tombs of Michelangelo, Machiavelli and Galileo!




I must say that with all of the beautiful art in Florence, Rod and I decided that our favorite "piece of art" was the delicious ice cream that we had at this restaurant!!



Thanks for reading!
Annette