There are few, if any, landmarks on the planet more recognizable than the Leaning Tower of Pisa. It is unique, and not only for its tilt, which is somewhere between 4 and 5.5 degrees after having been stabilized in the early 2000s. It represents a distinct architectural style, Pisan Romanesque. And it caters to one of the most iconic “everyone takes one” photos that haunts social media.

And yet, for most who have been to the city of Pisa, roughly an hour by train from Florence, a visit involves seeing the famous tower and then leaving, taking cautionary tales of “it isn’t worth it” back to their friends and family, who then in turn ignore them to see the landmark for themselves. Of course, there is more to do and see in Pisa, but few leave the Piazza del Duomo – where it and a few other buildings are located – to do or see any of it, instead walking directory between the train station and the Leaning Tower and back.

It is a lesson in poor PR, and in missed opportunities.

Pisa is an old city, dating back at least to Etruscan times, although little remains from its earlier life. From the 11th century or so, it became one of the most important port cities in Italy, and one of the strongest and richest of the Italian city states. It is during this period that the city built its cathedral, consecrating it in 1118.

The cathedral, or duomo, is marked by its spectacular arched columns. The style, found only here and in nearby cities that were within the Pisan sphere of influence, is known as Pisan Romanesque, characterized by narrow arches punctuated by slender columns, more for decoration than for structural integrity. Looking at the facade of the cathedral, it appears as though the arches are roughly half of what they should be, split into two by a column. That is the pure definition of the style.

In 1173, the ground was broken for a new campanile, or bell tower, for the cathedral. As was the style at the time, it was not attached to the building proper, rather being located just across the plaza. Early on during construction, due to soft ground and a poor foundation, the tower began to lean. And so the Leaning Tower of Pisa was born, with construction on the already tilted tower finishing in 1372. It copies the style of the cathedral, in full Pisan Romanesque, with its arches and columns encircling each level of the 183 foot tower.

Pisa would be conquered by Florence, and while it retained its place as a university town and port, the fifteenth century conquest would mark the beginning of Pisan decline, ultimately resulting in what is today a small college town of around 90,000 along with hundreds of thousands of tourists.

It is a reasonably interesting history, both from an architectural and engineering standpoint, as well as a political one with Pisa allying with various other Italian cities against each other over the centuries. It is the birthplace of Galileo (although Florence claims the astronomer due to Pisa being part of a Florence-led Grand Duchy of Tuscany by that point) and of Fibonacci, and the seat of one of the oldest universities in Italy as well as a more modern one personally founded by Napoleon. There are palazzos and museums, parks and churches… and yet tourists see none of this. Why?

The answer lies in a visit to the Piazza del Duomo, to the foot of the Leaning Tower itself. All around, tourists pose rather hilariously, trying to capture images of themselves holding up the tower. The buildings gleam. But one thing lacks: signage. There is, literally, not one sign telling the story of the building projects here in the square, let alone anything else of the city. Each year, more than five million tourists come to Pisa, all of them ending up right here, and they learn nothing unless they are on a guided tour group.

Instead, Pisa seems completely content to just collect money from visitors who want to climb the tower, or to enter any of the other buildings on the square. (A ticket to do all of the above is €27, while entering all but not climbing the tower itself is a more reasonable €10.) Even inside of the buildings – I don’t climb the tower – the only signage is religious in nature, describing biblical frescoes inside the Camposanto (while ignoring literally anything else there, like its history, the legend that the ground is so acidic that bodies will decompose in just 24 hours, or the fact that Fibonacci is interred here), or the art of baptism inside the stunning – from the outside; the inside is fairly plain – 1363 Baptistry.

The moral here is that if, in fact, Pisa sucks beyond seeing the Leaning Tower, it is solely the fault of Pisa itself. It is an opportunity either missed or deliberately not taken. And it makes me sad. I’m sad that I’m forced to use Google to get any basis for what I’m seeing, and sad that few others here will even do that much, instead just taking their silly photo and leaving, never to know anything of the city in which they stand.

So is there more to Pisa? The truth is that I don’t really know. I wander some lovely pedestrian streets, find some terrific food (a sandwich at L’Ostellino and the best gelato I’ve had in Italy so far at De’ Coltelli), and look at some beautiful buildings on the Piazza dei Cavalieri, and then I head back to the train station and Florence with the rest of the masses.

The Leaning Tower of Pisa is iconic. It is beautiful. It is worth seeing. And it should be the gateway to an incredible exploration of a city with a pretty cool history and a unique architectural style. Sadly, it isn’t – and may never be – that last one.

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