My wife and I visited Pisa during an excursion on a Viking Ocean Cruise this past November. The Piazza contains the major buildings to see in Pisa. It contains the Leaning Tower, the Cathedral, and the Baptistery. It was a rainy day, but we still enjoyed our tour of Pisa. Rather than waiting in line to go up the Tower and to see the other sites, we went to a coffee shop and chilled for an hour.

I felt this was better than expected. We only got inside the Baptistery as we only had about 40 minutes here. We didn't climb the tower. There are several things to see such as: tower, cathedral, baptistery, museum, cemetery, etc. Make sure you take the picture trying to straighten the tower. This was one of my husband's favorites in our whole trip to Italy. Construction here begun in 1092. There are 296 steps to the top of the leaning tower.

The initial view as I entered the main archway was mind blowing. A view like nothing that I had ever seen before and in the afternoon sun the brightness of the marble all around me was almost overpowering. Unfortunately the tickets to go into all of the buildings are sold out well in advance so I could only marvel from the outside. That in itself was awesome but I so wish that I had thought to look some weeks earlier to get tickets.

It was my first time that I visited Pisa and this magnificent square. I dare say that Pisa is very underrated compared to its tuscan counterparts. This area although filled with tourists, still manages to provide you with a serene environment. Highly suggested that people visiting Tuscany, to spend at least 1 day in Pisa.

As you enter you are greeted by white marble. All the religious building are cover in bright, beautiful white marble. And be prepared for crowds. Actually, it was crowded all the way to the Piazza. There is a sign with information, but you can immediately see major buildings you are there to see. Also, there are restaurants and public toilets. The toilets cost 1 Euro. Be prepared for lines at every stop you want to make. The grassy areas were closed by chains, but some people were walking on the grass.

The day we were there it was hot, busy and spectacular. I hadn't realized that three major, impressive building are on this site, namely the tower, cathedral and baptism dome. All situated on well manicured lawns. We tried to stay in the shade and avoid the crowds which was relatively easy. Of course you have a plethora of souvenir shops as well as cafes, ice cream shops and restaurants selling their goods at relatively high prices. But I simply enjoyed the people watching and seeing how many tourists were jostling to take that iconic (!) photograph of either trying to straighten the tower or push it further to lean at an even greater angle. Without much success :-)