Associated Press
PISA, Italy — After a $27 million realignment that dragged on over a decade, visitors are once again making the dizzying climb up Pisa’s Leaning Tower.
The tower reopened to the public Saturday, a little less off center but still confounding visitors.
"I thought it was amazing and at the same time frightening!" marveled Richard Colbourne, a New York-based graphic designer. "I still have a headache!"
When the tower closed in 1990, officials said it would be open again in just a few years. The ambitious plan to reverse some of the tilt to ensure it wouldn’t topple — at first regarded with some skepticism — took far longer than expected.
Engineers shaved off 17 inches and guided the monument back to where it was in 1838. The tower now leans 13.5 feet off the perpendicular, and is not expected to return to its 1990 position for another three centuries.
Construction on the 190-foot-high tower began in 1173 to celebrate the glory of Pisa, in those years a wealthy maritime republic.
The soil underneath its foundations began sinking before workers completed the third level, starting its centuries-long famous tilt. The builders forged ahead, however, completing it in 1360.
The renovation included attaching a pair of steel "suspenders" to the tower, and then excavating soil under its foundations to try to realign it. The tower’s seven bronze bells were stilled for fear that their vibrations would threaten the tower’s stability.
Michele Jamiolkowski, the head of the project, said the tower’s marble still needs to be restored, a project estimated to cost $4.3 million.
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