Pisa


 * Pisa, Italy**



**__Location:__** Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, located on the River Amo and the Tyrrhenian Sea. **__Population:__** The population of Pisa is about 89, 694.



__** Culture **__ There are many different cultural events that take place in Pisa.

__**Capodanno Pisano**__: This day is the Catholic celebration of the anouncement by the angel Gabriel to Mary that she would be the mother of Jesus. On March 25th every year, Pisa holds a huge ceremony to commemorate the ancient tradition, which includes a parade and a marble egg lighting. The marble egg lighting is held in the Cathedral, where a marble egg is placed above the pulpit in front of a small window. When the sunbeam strikes the egg, the Pisans celebrate the new year!



__**Gioco del Ponte:**__ This event is held during the last weekend in June, and litteraly means "game of the bridge". This is where two 'teams', the Tramontana (people from North of the River Amo), and the Mezzogiorni (people from South of the River Amo) battle to see who is best in the town. The teams parade on their sides of the river, and then they go to battle. The battle is held on the Ponte di Mezo bridge, where the teams must push an extremely heavy cart onto the other team's side of the bridge, using nothing but the backs of their necks!


 * __Luminara di San Ranieri:__**This event is held on June 16th every year to celebrate the Saint Ranieri. The celebration starts early in the afternoon as a huge festival in the streets, with musicians playing their instruments everywhere. As nighty falls, the city is lit up with 140,000 candles placed in white wooden frames. These candles are placed on bridges, buildings, river banks, and the facades of the Palazzi of the Lungarno. Businesses have a competition to see who can make the most creative display with them. There are fireworks, and live bands and parties all throughout the city.[[image:moderndayitaly/5818470739_e5d133c850_z.jpg width="256" height="192" align="left"]]

**__ Food __** The food in Pisa varies greatly. Some typical foods in Pisa are cheese, lamb, chicken, seafood, and fresh produce. Tuscan bread is a very important addition to almost any Pisan meal, especially soups, which are mainly enjoyed in the winter months. Pisan meals incorporate lots of pasta, and many types of meat and fish. Desserts are based on dried fruit, nuts, oil, and wine biscuits. Lamb Fricasse is a popular dish in Pisa, while Sullo Scio is a very popular soup.

__** History Through The Ages **__

Pisa began as a Roman colony, with Etruscan and Ligurian influences. In 1075 the statesmen of Pisa developed a code of laws known as the Conseutudini di mare//.// These laws created a legal environment that allowed the empire of Pisa to grow and prosper. At the beginning of the 12th century, Pisa joined the Vatican in the first crusades. During the 12th century Pisa developed many colonies including Antioch, Tripoli, and Tunis. In 1343 The University of Pisa was founded and in 1589 Galileo Galilei moved there to begin teaching mathematics. In the period between 1589 and 1591 Galileo conducted his legendary experiments on gravitational forces by dropping objects from the leaning tower of Pisa. Through the 1400s and 1500s Pisa was continuously assaulted by Florence, and eventually had to turn over control of the government to the Council of Ten.