Before I actually saw the Leaning Tower of Pisa, I had imagined it to be standing all alone. (Never mind the pictures I must have seen before, with all the buildings surrounding. Our memory and imagination are more powerful than the bare facts;-)) When you approach the area with the Tower, you encounter a wall surrounding what is called Piazza dei Miracoli. And it is by no mistake that Piazza dei Miracoli bears this very name.