Pistoia is a Tuscan city full of monuments and it is also a well-preserved urban center where it is pleasant to walk, sit and taste a good wine.
The best way to get there from any direction is by train. If you have just booked an hotel room in Florence it will only take you 40 minutes to reach Pistoia station with a regional train. At the exit you will have to walk for no more than 10 minutes to get in the most interesting part (here the website to the railway company, Trenitalia)
The small city of Pistoia is called in various ways that best define one or the other aspect of its architecture, history and culture: the city of the Pulpits (and you will immediately discover why), the city of the Romanesque, the architectural style characterized here by the "bicromia” green and white , due to the local marbles.
Pistoia is incredible to live in early summer, when in a few days a series of horse shows and historical courtships come together to evoke its past.
The most important is a week dedicated to Saint Jacopo towards whom the population has a long history of devotion.
The cathedral of Pistoia presents its white marble statue on the top of the facade. The statue is dressed in a robe with red cloak, hat and shell in the days of the Palio del Micco, a medieval bear symbol of the city since the time of free commune (Pistoia was one of the first in Italy).
The Palio is arun previously characterized by speed, today by mastery in riding, which consists in hitting a target with the tip of a spear. This race is run in costume. The districts of the city participate in the competition, each with its team, its banner and characteristic colors. Very similar to the type of tradition found in other nearby cities such as Siena. And in fact at the same time thepali, or jousting, date back to Volterra and other cities of chivalric and medieval Italy.
You can make a visit in just two hours which includes a walking tour in the historic center, the climb to the bell tower, a visit to the Cathedral and the "pieve" church of Sant'Andrea, San Giovanni Fuorcivitas and San Bartolomeo in Pantano, to then end up in Piazza della Sala where it is pleasant to stop for an aperitif or an outdoor dinner.
Suitable for families with children!
