Siena

Today I took a bus to Siena, which is a somewhat smaller city than Florence. I could do all of it on foot. I walked by a number of Gothic designed churches, as Siena is in general known for all the gothic art and architecture. I got some gelato...I got chocolate hazelnut and stracciatella (which is chocolate chip). I headed towards the main center, Piazza del Campo, where the Palazzo Comunale and Torre del Mangia are. This was Siena's civic and social center since it was built in the 14th century. The square itself is shaped like a sink. With the Fonte Gaia in the upper part, and then at the lowest part the Palazzo Comunale. The Torre del Mangia is the bell tower. Inside the Comunale is a museum, which I also visited, and have no pictures of as they were not allowed. I did take a number of pictures from the top of the Torre del Mangia though; you climb up a winding stairway to the top, it's the best view of Siena and the country side you will get. After this, I went to a caffe-dessert bar, and tried some local desserts. I tried something called Panforte, which is a rich cake of almonds, honey, and candied fruit. I also got a Torte dei Chocolate, of course. They were pretty good. I made my way to the Cathedral, which is one of Italy's greatest Gothic churches. There was unfortunately some construction going on, so you will see in the pictures from the outside of the church a crane in the background. I also walked past and peeked into the Crypt, which is in back and underneath the cathedral. I got cheap, and didn't want to pay the €6 to walk through it on my own, as I have already seen a crypt in Rome...not that they are all the same, I am sure it would be great...but yeah. I also checked out the Baptistry which is also on the same side of the cathedral. It has the same type of Gothic design on the outside as the front of the cathedral. Santa Maria della Scala is another museum type with lots of gothic artwork. I also only peeked in here, as it was another €10 to get in I think. I walked around more, checking out the streets and stores. I had to wait until the dinner places opened up again at 7, as they close for about 5 hours. I did not want to eat at the really touristy places in the Piazza del Campo, I wanted something really local and nice. So again, I tried a place recommended by my guide book, La Chiacchera. I was the only one there for a while, but the staff was very young and Mario the manager keep talking to me so it was pretty good. I wanted to try the pasta pici, which are thick hand made Sienese noodles. Mario was very accommodating and let me have whatever sauce I wanted, he recommended a cheese sauce with pepper, and then as my second course to try a pork chop. That sounded great, and then he asked me if I wanted a liter of wine! I said I probably wouldn't make it back to the bus if I had that much to drink. So I just got a 1/2 liter, like i usually do of the red house wine. The food was fantastic, I loved the pasta. The pork chop came with a tomato and red wine sauce that was really unique and great. As I had to catch the last bus back to Florence at 8:45, I had to leave without dessert or more wine, to Mario's disappointment haha. Now I am heading to shower and to bed, as I have to try waiting in the queue tomorrow for the Uffizi...

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