Our excursion for this port city of Livorno, Italy was a private tour with a Cruise Critic group of 8. We met our driver/guide at 8 a.m. to begin the tour. Once we settled into the van we traveled approximately 12 miles away from the coast into the beautiful area of Tuscany in Central Italy and to our first stop, Pisa.
The city of Pisa lies at the junction of two rivers forming a lagoon area. Ancient Roman authors referred to Pisa as an old city. Archeological remains from the 5th century BC confirmed the existence of a city at this location, trading with Greeks and Gauls.
Once in Pisa our stop was in the Cathedral Square (“Piazza del Duomo”) a wide, walled area in the heart of the city. It is recognized as one of the main centers for medieval art in the world. Partly paved and partly grassed, it is dominated by four great religious edifices: the cathedral (Duomo), the cathedral’s free standing bell tower (Campanile), the Baptistery and the Camposanto.
The round Romanesque building shown above is the Baptistery. The building of this beautiful edifice was begun in the mid 12th century. It is the largest baptistery in Italy. Its circumference measures 358 feet in diameter. Taking into account the statue of St. John the Baptist on top of the dome, it is even slightly higher than the Leaning Tower. Below is the cathedral (“Duomo”), followed by the cathedral’s free standing bell tower (“Campanile”).
This leaning tower of Pisa definitely leans!
As we walked from the piazza, we stopped in a couple of shops before we arrived at the van. Here, once again, is food so beautifully displayed. (One would think we were hungry!)
Back in the van we travel through the Tuscany countryside toward Florence. Here are pictured the grapes of a famous Tuscany winery.
Above is our first view of Florence, Italy. Notice in the background, the magnificence of the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore (Florence Cathedral complex). The first stone of this basilica was laid on September 9, 1296. The entire complex was not completed for almost six hundred years.
Here is the beautiful Façade of the Cathedral that was completed in 1887.
And, the inside…
Probably one of the most famous works of art in Florence is Michelangelo’s David which is housed in the Accademia Museum (“Galleria dell’Accademia”).
Here, a copy of the David is displayed in Palazzo della Signoria. Because pictures cannot be taken of the original David inside the museum, one must snap pictures of the various copies.
David was commissioned in 1501 by the Cathedral Works Committee (Opera Del Duomo). At the age of 26, Michelangelo was given a leftover block of marble that came from the mountains of Carrara--one which had previously been worked on by various other artists. The piece was intended as a monumental work, a testimony to the city's republican pride, not one for close confinement, but it was moved to the Accademia in 1873 (from outside the Palazzo Vecchio, where a replica now stands) to protect it from the ravages of time and the weather.
Viewed as a gallery piece, David looks odd; his upper body and head are both out of proportion, and out of keeping with the Renaissance obsession with the perfect harmony of form and proportion. However, it's argued that this is yet more evidence of Michelangelo's bravura - not only is David an incredible feat of technical skill, the scale is deliberate, as from the original viewpoint of the viewer the upper body would have been much farther away.
Street that led into this plaza…
Statutes in a plaza…
And a copy of David outside of the Accademia museum.
Inside the Accademia museum…
After seeing the original David, we walked toward the Arno River to see the Old Bridge (“Ponte Vecchio”). This 14th century bridge is noted for having shops built along it—it is less like a bridge and more like a shopping center built over water. The present tenants are jewelers, art dealers, and souvenir sellers.
The bridge spans the Arno at its narrowest point where it is believed that a bridge was first built in Roman times. The bridge consists of three segmental arches: the main arch has a span of 98 ft; the two side arches each span 88 ft
Here we crossed the bridge with the shops on either side of the walkway and stopped for a picture.
Leaving Ponte Vecchio we passed through these beautiful arched doorways…
and eventually stopped at a shop where we had gelato—the very best we had in all of Italy!
After a full day of touring, our guide returned us to the ship.
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