Venue

The most famous attraction in Pisa is by far the impressive and worldwide renowned Torre Pendente or Leaning Tower, actually a 56 m high Bell Tower completed in 1372 after almost 2 centuries of work.
It represents the gem of the stunning square named Piazza dei Miracoli, where also the Cathedral, the Baptistry and the Monumental Cemetery stand as remarkable memories of the medieval period of utmost power and wealth of the city, in the beautiful framework of the ancient walls.
In fact, for some time the independent Republic of Pisa emerged as a major maritime power in the Mediterranean area, boasting a powerful fleet with skilled sailors and brave knights who were able to create and protect a wide and profitable network of trading routes and overseas colonies.
Such wealth was also partly invested in building an impressive set of monuments related to one of the dominant factors of life at the time, i.e. religion, in order to get protection from God, to please the population, and to increase the prestige of the city by reassuring the allies while instilling fear in the enemies.
Nevertheless, the large free lot selected for the purpose at the northern periphery of the city turned out later on to be not the best: in fact, it lacked a rock bed while the soil was somewhat unstable and prone to slowly subside because in older times a river flowed just there before being buried.
During construction, both the Cathedral (especially the main facade), and even more the taller Bell Tower, were then affected by uneven soil settlement phenomena, which gave rise to the quite unintentional yet very visible "leaning effect".
Since the building investment was huge, while the period of peak wealth of the city lasted relatively little time, the monuments were ultimately completed in a long timespan in the place originally planned; nevertheless, in the end what was initially seen as a half-failure turned into such a peculiar feature that the "Torre di Pisa" became the most famous "leaning tower" in the world.
Anyway, the leaning angle of the Tower grew in time until, about 35 years ago, the monument was deemed to be in real danger of collapsing. Therefore, after a careful analysis and planning phase, an outstanding and quite delicate recovery and stabilization intervention was undertaken using advanced engineering solutions, finally succeeding in 2001 when the Leaning Tower was re-opened to the public.
In fact, nowadays it is able to attract thousands of visitors per day from all over the world, who never miss the chance to take all types of photos, including the iconic "support the Tower" challenge.

The second most remarkable square in the city is Piazza dei Cavalieri, where three historical buildings are found:
- Palazzo della Carovana, a noble palace initially used as the seat of the Order of the Knights of Saint Stephen, then passed on to the Scuola Normale Superiore to be used as its main place since its foundation;
- Chiesa di S. Stefano, formerly the Church of the Order of the Knights of Saint Stephen, now a museum hosting many trophies conquered during the multiple fights mainly against Saracen pirates and Turkish armies, including the famous naval battle of Lepanto.
- Palazzo dell'Orologio, the former tower where, according to the tradition, the deposed tyrant of the city Ugolino della Gherardesca was imprisoned and condemned to death by starvation together with his sons and grandsons; according to the probably fake story also mentioned in the famous poem Divina Commedia, when pressed by hunger he did not refrain from killing and eating his own offspring, thus confirming his evil nature.

The city of Pisa grew in time around the Arno river, the main one in Tuscany, which also flows through Florence.
Therefore, the Lungarni area, around the banks of the river, is also populated with several buildings of historical interest, including:
- the former Monastery of the Benedictine Nuns, where the Conference is hosted;
- Palazzo "alla Giornata", a noble palace that is now the core of the University of Pisa, hosting the Rector, the Pro-Rectors, the Board and the Senate;
- Palazzo "La Sapienza", once the historical place of the University of Pisa, nowadays the main site of the Department of Law.
Three important museums are also found here:
- National Museum "San Matteo", featuring a collection of medieval sculptures and peculiar cross paintings;
- National Museum "Palazzo Reale", featuring a collection of more recent paintings;
- National Museum "Navi Antiche", where exceptionally well preserved wooden parts of original Roman ships are on display: these come from some sunk vessels that were recovered in the area of the ancient port of Pisa, which got buried beneath muddy soil that protected the usually perishable materials from natural disintegration.

The area surrounding Pisa is also rich in opportunities for enjoying the visit from many points of view, including historical, monumental, artistic, environmental, and gastronomic.
For example, the nearby village of Calci hosts the monumental Certosa di Calci, a former monks monastry presently hosting 2 museums.
Just 20 km away, the city of Lucca deserves a particular mention, as it also features several historical buildings and one of the most impressive and best preserved examples of artillery-proof walls built during the Renaissance period.