Pisa and the Certosa di Calci

Travel Program

Program:

Upon arrival in Pisa, meeting with the guide to visit the city. You will walk up to the Lungarni crossing Piazza dei Miracoli characterized by the grandeur of the Baptistery, the Cathedral and the Leaning Tower; Piazza dei Cavalieri where you will admire the Palazzo della Carovana (seat of the Scuola Normale Superiore), the characteristic Palazzo dell'Orologio (composed of the union of the Tower of the Seven Ways and the Torre della Muda, the latter also known as the "hunger" Count Ugolino della Gherardesca was imprisoned, accused of treason together with his children and grandchildren) and the sixteenth-century Church of the Knights of Santo Stefano. Lunch in a restaurant. In the afternoon, visit the Certosa di Calci (1336), where you can retrace the life of the Carthusian monks, for whom it was the residence for over six centuries, and discover an extraordinary monastic complex full of works of art. You can access the rooms dedicated to the hermit life of the monks, the large cloister, along whose arms the 15 monks' cells are arranged, one of which is open to visitors. It will then be possible to visit the Baroque church, the numerous chapels and the areas where life in common took place, such as the refectory and the spaces dedicated to hospitality, such as the Grand Duke's guesthouse. It is a mystical path that is reflected in the architecture and symbols present in the monastery and which is still clearly perceived today, transporting us to a dimension out of time. The places of recollection of essential spirituality, such as the monastic cells, coexist with environments worthy of a royal residence, since between the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries it became the place for the spiritual retreat of the Grand Dukes of Tuscany and when, even in the respect for Carthusian spirituality, it was transformed to accommodate the refined court of Florence. End of services.