I had to go to Pisa Nord to arrange my telepass, so I thought I would go a bit further and visit Marina di Pisa. We have been to Pisa several times, but not the port by the sea. It was nothing like I expected it to be. At the mouth of the Arno I found some strange little huts sitting in the middle of the river where it meets the sea.
fishing huts at the mouth of the river
they seem to be on a rock wall in the river
I went on to the more commercial part of the marina area and found a long stretch of built up beach front. It is early in the season and there were very few people about. It is not particularly glamourous like the areas north of Viareggio, but I can see that is could be fun in the summer when people fill the restaurants lining the sea front and little boats fill the marinas.
the beachfront at Marina di Pisa
looking the other way
It is not a sandy beach. There is a rock wall along the road and the beach is stony and difficult to walk on.
a very stony beach
you would need serious beach shoes to get to the water
it is popular with fishermen
lots of rock walls
safe areas for small boats
there are no boats yet
there is some sandy beach
a restaurant by the beach
I had lunch at this restaurant – L’Arsella. It was crowded with locals…always a good sign.
the setting was very nautical
The reataurant is opposite a very stark church.
shining in the sun
On the way home I passed a very pretty church, which seems to be part of Pisa university. It was sitting in a field of tiny daisies.
an ancient church near the sea
The countryside in Tuscany is very diverse. Bagni di Lucca is in the mountains and within an hour or 2 we can be by the sea, skiing at Abetone, wandering the delightful streets of Florence or driving through Chianti. What more could you want?
This is a completely different side of Pisa. Check here and here for more on Pisa.
Love the 2nd pic, looks almost nordic, hard to believe it’s Tuscany! I’m always curious about these fishing huts when we’ve passed them on the Arno. Any ideas how they work and what they catch?
By: From a Tuscan Villa on March 25, 2011
at 8:01 am
I have no idea. It wasn’t at all what I expected. I think I have to investigate further.
By: bagnidilucca on March 25, 2011
at 8:45 am
I love these photographs! So different in tone to the ones inland. I also think some of them have a Nordic feel to them.
Congratulations on being Freshly Pressed for your Bologna post! I completely missed that – not the post itself, but the fact that it was chosen. I think you deserve to be picked just about every time you post something. Your photographs and text are always wonderful. I don’t always comment, but I read every post.
By: lisa@notesfromafrica on March 25, 2011
at 8:27 am
Thank you for your lovely comments. Marina di Pisa was a complete surprise to me. I would like to go back when there are a few more people about to get a better idea about the place. It was all a bit stark. The Bologna thing came as a surprise also. It is interesting being freshly pressed as you would know. Let’s hope it happen to both of us again.
By: bagnidilucca on March 25, 2011
at 8:44 am
I actually like the starkness about it. Even the colours of the houses are more subdued than in Bagni di Lucca.
You said in one of your other posts that you don’t know much about photography. But you definitely have an eye for composition!
By: lisa@notesfromafrica on March 25, 2011
at 9:24 am
I wish I knew more about photography and even my camera, but I am ever so slightly lazy. I really will have to learn how to use my camera to its potential. I liked the coast at Pisa too, but it is completely different from everywhere else I have been here, and I was expecting something else entirely. Everything looked bleached by the sun, particularly the stones on the beach. They must be blinding in the full summer sun.
By: bagnidilucca on March 25, 2011
at 9:41 am
Debra, I wonder which movie Marina di Pisa has featured in, some of your pictures are so familiar. Intriguing.
By: Anna Johnston on March 25, 2011
at 11:05 am
I don’t know that. I didn’t recognise it at all.
By: bagnidilucca on March 25, 2011
at 1:55 pm
Oh NO…., now I’ll be wondering forever 🙂 I’ll let you know if I remember 🙂
By: Anna Johnston on March 27, 2011
at 5:55 am
The pebbles on the beach are exactly as I remember Britains beaches (photo no. 6 in this post) – well at least those on the Kent coast, Whitstable, Tankerton in particular. I get very homesick for the sound of the sea raking backwards and tumbling the little pebbles around. I like especially your photos of the two churches. The stark one has such an austere beauty. I would love to be with you if you ever go to the Kent coast. I remember little beach huts just above the beaches – I think Victorian beaches might have similar ones. When I was a child I thought they were so grand and that they must have been owned by very rich people – Peter thought they were hysterically funny! I like seaside towns in the winter.
By: Jan on March 25, 2011
at 12:29 pm
I grew up with white sandy beaches at Main Beach and find the pebbles a bit daunting, not to mention sharp and painful.
By: bagnidilucca on March 25, 2011
at 1:57 pm
Hi Debra: I agree. that is what is so beautiful about Bagni di Lucca or Lucca. close to so many cities in such a short time. i will be right behind you before you know it. i cant wait. your pictures really help to give me hope that if this is how you want to live you can. take care. George M.
By: george miori on March 25, 2011
at 2:42 pm
I’m sure you will love BdL when you come.
By: Debra Kolkka on March 25, 2011
at 3:39 pm
Your pictures are absolutely beautiful! And I love the stony beaches. The old church in the field of daisies is an amazing shot too. Thank you!
By: Anna Harrison on March 25, 2011
at 4:49 pm
The old church in the daisies just popped up beside the road when i was driving away from the beach. I love these surprises in Italy.
By: bagnidilucca on March 25, 2011
at 5:01 pm
Anna J.,
well, your long wait is ended. A “famous” italian movie which was shot there is this: http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lo_chiamavano_Bulldozer
Pretty funny, actually!
R#
By: Anonymous on May 2, 2012
at 8:25 pm
By: Debra Kolkka on May 2, 2012
at 8:53 pm
[…] I have been to Marina di Pisa before…I can’t believe it was in 2011, how time flies! Here is the earlier post. Marina di Pisa […]
By: A day at the seaside | Bagni di Lucca and Beyond on June 17, 2021
at 7:16 pm