Siena

 

We’ve been busy! Yesterday we left the Cinque Terre and boarded the bus, destined first for Lucca, then Siena. Lucca is a beautiful walled city where we had a couple of hours to explore and get lunch before moving on to Siena, where we are staying 2 nights. 

Upon arrival we hit the ground running, taking a long walking tour of the city and learning a lot about the neighborhoods and traditions. There are 17 neighborhoods in the city and they have rivalries that go back centuries. Twice a year there is a horse race (Palio) held in the center of town and 10 of the 17 neighborhoods will have a horse running. It’s all done by random draw, including which horse represents which neighborhood, and these people are fanatical about it! They hire jockeys and try to bribe the competing jockeys to lose and it’s all very crazy. 

Anyway, one of the neighborhood groups (called Contrada) hosted us for a dinner they prepared as a way of raising money for the race. It was very good, starting with an appetizer course of cheese and salami, followed by a pasta course, and then a main course of stewed wild boar and potatoes. Dessert was gelato plus biscotti and wine for dunking it in.We are definitely eating well here! 

Today we started out with a trip to a stained glass shop to see the process of making those spectacular windows, followed by a tour of the Cathedral here. It has amazing marble mosaic floors that are covered most of the year to protect them. We were fortunate to get here at a time when they’re on display because they tell biblical stories and are really something to see. We did some more eating and sightseeing this afternoon before coming back to the hotel for some needed rest. Ciao!