>>SIENA

Bell tower in city center
view from bell tower
Calzone with wild boar and goat cheese

After the excitement in Rome we had a layover issue in a small town on our way to Siena. We stopped in the small town and ventured out for dinner. We ate an amazing meal at an old lady's bed and breakfast-amazing pasta and delictable homemade wine! We then caught the train to Siena arriving late that night. That evening we went to the main piazza to explore the night life. Since it was Sunday night few places were open-however I did have the treat to sample a bottle of Chiuso, a beer made by monks in the nearby monestary. The beer cannot be bought in bottles anywhere else and it tasted almost like coffee or chocolate it was so dark. The next day, 29th, we had a free day with a suggested itenerary and assigned sketches. Siena is a relatively small town and we pretty much covered the entire city. For lunch I had the most incredible calzone,above, with wild boar and goat cheese! One interesting aspect of Siena are the 9 neighborhoods. Each with their own coat of arms and each with their own champion horse racer to represent the neighborhood. The square(middle) is built into a natural ring, which is used once a year for the horse race. The winning neighborhood celebrates all year long. The next day, 30th, we woke up early and ventured by train to Florence.