Family Fun: Treasures of Pisa
-
Port
Livorno (Florence/Pisa), Italy
-
Activity Level
Moderate
-
Excursion Type
All
-
Wheelchair Accessible
No
-
Starting At
$119.95
-
Minimum Age
Information Not Currently Available
-
Duration
Approximately 4½ Hours
-
Meals Included
Meals not included
Calling all young people and the adults they're supervising for the day! Here's your chance to enter the fabulous world of magnificent architecture, with a touch of invention and discovery on the side. Pisa is the world of Fibonacci and Galileo -- the two Italian characters that personify Italy's contribution to the disciplines of mathematics and physics.
Upon arrival in the splendid town of Pisa, leave the coach at the Pietrasantina and walk to the Porta Nuova. Your specialized guide, who is great with children, will point out the city walls. Using a specially-designed activity booklet, young people will have fun identifying the symbols in the Medici Coat of Arms, and learning how the Roman and Arabic numeric systems were introduced to Europe.
There's time for creepy stories when you visit the duomo (Cathedral) of Pisa, and your guide will show you the 'Claws of the Devil'. What do they mean? Why are they here in a church? You'll find out before you cross the square for a "must-do" photo opportunity -- you single-handedly holding up the Leaning Tower -- one of many great memories for everyone.
Outside the baptistery, the guide tells you about the various monuments around the piazza, and talks about trade links between Pisa and other kingdoms around the Mediterranean. Step inside and, in this amazing atmosphere, participate in a short game in the very place where Galileo and Fibonacci were baptized. Kids are sent off to figure out the months of the year depicted in the east portal of the baptistery, with the help of their activity booklet.
Outside the Leaning Tower, inspect the animal reliefs on the lower band (dragons, bears, rams) and hear an authentic local story that explains why they are here. Contemplate the tower and the role it played in Galileo's experiments around the laws of free fall, and Fibonacci's development of the sequence that describes the perfect proportions found in nature, architecture and art.
Notes:
Wear comfortable walking shoes. Tour does not visit inside the Leaning Tower.