Siena!

So sorry for not updating on our trip to Siena! We have jumped right into planning our next trip this weekend to....Venice! We are super excited about, but allora...This post is about Siena (allora is the equivalent to "anyway").
 So, I explained in th last post about how we ended up in Siena. Not an easy feat. This is why it takes several hours to plan trips! And the stress that goes into it...but the result is worth it! Britt and I loved Siena. We used my iPad to find where our hostel was, " Casa di Antonella". The hostel keeper, Fabrizio, asked me to text him when we would be getting in, something I never thought I'd do! Made it feel very homey, which it basically was! It was a nondescript door with 4 names on it, the top one being Casa di Antonella. We rang the buzzer and the door unlocked! Then we climbed 4 flights of stairs to the very top. We met Fabrizio and he showed us our room, the two common bathrooms, and the kitchen. We set our stuff down and were on our way to explore!

First, we went to a small grocery store "La Fontana Della Frutta" and bought two containers of food, one was a pesto lasagna, the other couscous. She gave us two forks and we walked to the steps of the Baptistery and ate. Then we walked around the other side of the Baptistery to the Duomo. It is one of the most breathtaking buildings I have ever seen. Inside and out. We bought a combined ticket for 12 euro to enter the Duomo, Museo Dell'opera, Baptistery, and Crypt. The Duomo was just magnificent. We brought our cardigans along because inside, we have to keep our shoulders covered inside the cathedral and we are expected to be very quiet out of extreme respect. The Museo Dell'opera houses Sienese masterpieces that were once displayed in the cathedral (Duomo). There was a staircase inside a wall that lead to what would have been the top of the facade of the New Cathedral construction if not for the Black Plague (bubonic) in 1348. These stairs, which were spiral inside a very tight squeeze, lead to a gorgeous view of the entire city and surrounding areas in Tuscany. The Crypt was next and is not really a crypt, but that is what was thought when an excavation in 1999 led to the discovery of an underground cavern lined with 13th century frescoes. They were still very brightly covered since they had been sealed off for many centuries. Then we saw the Baptistery which was made to hold up the end of the Duomo since it was build on a hill. It was a smaller, less extravagant place, but still very beautiful. Next we saw the Fontebranda that was an ancient fountain in medieval Siena. It was constructed in 1081 and rebuilt in 1246. It's a covered fountain that originally was divided into 3 basins. The spillover from each filled the next. The first basin was for drinking, second for animals, the third for mills and other industrial uses. Today it is just one big basin, but is still filled with water. Inside the covered fountain it is very cool and quaint. Our last historical stop was the home of Santa Caterina who was highly respected by the people of Siena. At one point during her meditation, she had a vision of herself marrying Christ. There is a fresco on the wall in her room where Jesus is placing a gold ring on her outstretched hand and ring finger. She was so highly revered that when she died, her body was distributed all our Italy to be put on display.

Then we grabbed some gelato and hung out in the Piazza del Campo, or il Campo. It is known as one of the finest squares in Italy. People just sit on the ground and hang out. There are all kinds of restaurants and hotels surrounding the square. At one point we heard some loud drumming and eventually saw a group of people, boys to old men, with their drums coming in and around the piazza. They were all wearing the flag of their neighborhood around their shoulders and followed by the women and young children in a parade around the streets of town. We saw at least 3 more instances like this from different neighborhoods going around down with their drums. The Palio, a horse race that takes place in il Campo occurs every July and August and is a contest between the 17 neighborhoods that divide Siena. We saw pictures around town from the last one that just took place and it looks pretty crazy.

For dinner, we went to a wonderful pizzeria, La Pizzeria Di Nonno Mede. It was tucked away on a back street and had a gorgeous view of the city. As night fell and the lights came on it turned into a magical evening.

The next day we visited San Domenico, another huge amazing church, albeit nowhere near the grandeur of the Duomo. Within this church, they had on display as I mentioned just earlier, Santa Caterina's thumb and, get this, head! They are each kept in a reliquary on an alter. This woman died in the 14th or 15th century! They both looked like mummy parts.

After this, we went back to our lovely pizzeria for lunch and then caught the bus back into Florence. Once we were on the final bus to Gavinana we thought we were home free, but as the bus went through the town and started to head out I piped up, "Can you stop here"? Apparently, we have to ring a bell so the driver knows when we want him to stop. Anyway, we made it back safe and sound Sunday night ready to start a new week!