We took the bus from Firenze since we learned the Siena train station is located on the outskirts of the town and it's not walking distance. It was about one hour and 15 minutes ride to get there from Firenze. The minute we got off the bus and started wandering through town we knew we were in for a special treat as everything was amazingly beautiful. Let me start with the colors. After visiting Italy for a few weeks what we have seen most are homes and buildings painted in warm, bright colors. This town is not; it's all red brick and stone with red roofs. Therefore, the uniqueness!
The introduction to the town is through narrow streets, like anywhere in Europe pretty much, but we noticed that the buildings looked well maintained and the quality of the shops was above the standard. We walked into a few of them and we sensed they were classy and fancy overall. From the coffee shop to the bread shop, the decorations were elegant.
We continued to walk all the hilly streets - some more than others. Its a town built on three hills and surrounded by well preserved hills too. It's filled with gothic architecture. The main attraction is the Piazza Il Campo and considered the heart of Siena. It's here where every summer, one time in July and another time in August, it hosts the world renown Palio of Siena, a huge colorful celebration of horse racing where 10 neighborhoods compete. I heard it is a very medieval ritual and the town goes wild among with the visitors. I can just imagine the explosion of authentic passion!
This piazza is part of Siena's identity. It's is shaped like a shell with scalloped edges and paved with red bricks arranged in fish bone style. It's like a shallow bowl with a concave shape. People sit to picnic and lay down like they were sunbathing at the beach. It was built in the 1200's and it was used for fair and markets then.
The tower of Mangia is at one of the sides of the piazza, the tallest landmark and meeting place in the piazza. Easy to find without a doubt!
The Duomo Cathedral is another masterpiece in Italy. It was built during the Renaissance and it is considered the soul of Siena. The exterior is white and dark-green with stripes and it is visible from many angles as it sits atop Siena's highest point. The interior is a riot of strip columns with marble inlays and contains many sculptures from Michelangelo and Bernini. Truly another unique Duomo.
We ended up eating lunch at San Desiderio Restaurant, located one block up from the piazza and it was decorated with horses everywhere, I think we all know why....a reflection of the town.
The food was authentic tuscan style. I wanted to order the steak florentine, but soon I realized the price was per gram and there was a minimum of 10 grams, which would have been €45 - needless to say I passed. Many other fantastic choices in the menu, excellent food and service. We were the first ones for lunch, but immediately a few others arrived. One of them a couple from Norway, she spoke with English, he didn't. They asked about our drinks, I was drinking a Negresco, an aperitif made with wine and some juice, light and refreshing. Ed was drinking a a juice concoction. We talked a litte about the menu as we were almost done.
Walking down the streets we ran into a shop that sells only "Panforte". It's some sort of a a big cookie packaged like a gift. Each flavor has a name. We bought one Panpepato. It was a chewy concoction of nuts, honey and dried fruit. The package for all panfortes is very unique. Each round of sweet is wrapped on the border and then covered with a thick paper folded in a unique way. It's another signature of the town.
We found sweets, we found gelato, but we also found characters in each town. This one I was able to photograph. A very elegant gentleman wearing fancy and colorful clothes enjoying the town. We ran into him a couple of times; first he was sitting drinking some coffee and then walking the town in style.
We decided to walk to the top of the hill, which was quite a hike, but we were able to see he entire town from the top. The picture above of the Duomo was taken there. Here is another one...it's a long trek uphill and very few people make it to this point.
We have done a lot of walking, but walking this town we were in suspense admiring the beauty, looking at such an old town that once was a major banking and trade center. However, after the town collapse in the middle of the 1300s it never recovered. But it is still standing and has become a favorite for many pilgrims like us. We always asked ourselves when we visiten a town that captures our hearts if this is a place we would consider living. Without doubt, we both said we could live here. There is magic, there is history, there is inspiration, there is beauty, there is reflection, there is passion; it has a heart and it has a soul! What else could one ask for? The heart is calling, the soul is alive!!! It truly stole our hearts!!!
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