We left Friday morning from Termini station near my parents' hotel and got in our rental which THANKFULLY had a gps system. Although it took nearly two hours to pick up the car (the line was extremely slow and they didn't tell us where the car was parked!) and program the gps (of course it wasn't in English), we hit the road without any major bumps along the way. It was so nice to travel in a car for once since it is so much faster and more spacious than the crowded buses I am used to. Our first stop was Siena and we spent the rest of our afternoon and night there since our hotel was located just outside the city walls.
We took a bus into town and our first stop was Il Campo, the main square. This was instantly a pleasure on the eyes given that it is a massive cobblestone courtyard. It feels even larger because it has a gradual, bowl-shaped slope that is surrounded by various cafès and a giant watchtower. We got some beer and pizza and sat down and people-watched for a bit. Right away I noticed Siena was full of really cute dogs- many looked a lot like Bello but none could compare to his adorable-ness. The town is immaculately well-preserved, clean, and free from any graffiti much unlike Rome. This is fortunate because it seemed the main focus of the town is ART. Siena is absolutely stunning; nearly every open wall is covered in intricate frescoes and the sloping/windy landscapes make for great architecture full of arches and massive staircases. The weather today was oddly suited for touring a medieval city like Siena. It was mostly grey with big puffy clouds dotting the horizon and I think it was fitting when thinking about life in the "Dark Ages."
The highlight of the day was our time spent in the DUOMO, the town's cathedral that had been built late 13th century that had been further developed until even into the Baroque. Just looking at the facade made that instantly clear: not an inch of that church had not been carefully designed and executed to the highest possible amount of ornamentation. It was beautiful and I don't think I've ever seen anything so exquisite for the eyes; even Saint Peter's wasn't as ornate and luxurious. With our six euro entrance fee (we skipped the additional museum and other attractions), we got to walk within the Duomo which was just as beautiful as the facade. Everything was decorated and the blue and white marble motif was stunning. I even got to see (although a reproduction) the famed Maestà by Duccio, a proto-Renaissance painter from Siena. Seeing a lifesize image in its original location made all the studying I have ever done on this piece suddenly come to life. As cheesy as it sounds, it finally all "made sense" what my teachers and authors have said about it; the work is truly a masterpiece, particularly given its ground-breaking qualities (it was painted in 1311, almost 100 years before Renaissance artists used the same modeling techniques to achieve this kind of realism). Another favorite part of the Duomo was the Piccolomini Library, a room commissioned by the papal family that incidentally once owned the hotel that we stayed in. This extremely ornate room contained many important manuscripts and had ten stunning frescoes detailing the life of Enea Silvio Piccolomini, who would become Pope Pius II in the 15th century. All of the scenes were painted by Pinturicchio, the artist that our hotel room happened to be named after. Of course it was amazing to learn a family history while sleeping in the very same place where the members might have once slept.
The next day was very busy! We were in a total of FIVE towns: Siena, Monteriggioni, Volterra, San Gimignano, and Montepulciano. Obviously much of our day was spent in the car driving to the different towns but the windy hill roads were fun to drive on. Each town was similar in its design (main piazza, duomo, watchtower, etc) but each had their own little speciality that helped us remember them. A couple of words on each of these:
Monteriggioni- a very tiny medieval commune that basically consisted of a single castle wall surrounding the few shops and central piazza. We got to walk on the balustrade that overlooked the valleys. Saw a guy literally playing a branch (like a kazoo).
Volterra- ancient Etruscan town with a famous arch constructed in 400 BC. Highlight was our lunch at La Vena di Vino, a tiny enotica (wine bar) run by two brothers with some pretty cool decorum I must say (the ceiling was covered with hanging bras!)
San Gimignano- another medieval town, a bit touristy and somehow known for its torture museums? Unfortunately I got a migraine so I had to excuse myself from seeing much while we briefly were there.
Montepulciano- place of our hotel, Mueblè Il Riccio (Mueblè the Hedgehog) and known for its Nobile wines. Driving to this location proved to be quite the challenge (a major understatement). The roads were ridiculously windy and nearly vertical at times and the gps was not helping. We eventually made it to our hotel and went to bed after a looong day.
Sunday morning:
We got up relatively early for the hotel breakfast which consisted of home-made pies, bread w/ salami and cheese, and of course cappuccino. It was very light and tasty. Afterwards, while everybody was getting ready I had free time so i climbed to the rooftop terrace of our hotel with my iPod to relax and check out the view. It was a nearly-perfect, 360 degree view and I was quite impressed (I'm all about those panoramic views, huh?) The weather was clear and crisp and I enjoyed watching the people in the Piazza Grande.
When we were all ready we walked around the piazza near our hotel and adjacent to the duomo. We went into the cathedral which was actually unfinished: the facade was barren and much of the interior was "blank." It was still very impressive and would easily out-do any contemporary American church but since we were in Italy it had a lot of competition. Outside in the piazza was an artisan fair and I randomly ran into my roommate Neil who was on a trip with JCU. He bought an ocarina from the fair which inspired me to do the same. So for 40 euro I picked out a beautifully decorated egg-shaped ocarina (hand flute) that I think was an excellent and functional souvenir that I will hopefully learn to play on a basic level at least.
Shortly after we left for Montalcino, a town known almost exclusively for its Brunello wines. Sunday was much windier and colder than the previous days so we wanted to get inside quickly. Luckily we found an enoteca adjacent to the town's fortress to have lunch at and to try a few wines. The pasta del giorno was really good and I loved my "Super Tuscan" glass of wine. After lunch we were freezing so we decided to leave to get to have more time in Montepulciano. Once parked back in town, we went to two more enotecas which had social and helpful hosts and ended up buying a few bottles to hopefully enjoy in Rome. I then took a lengthy nap and got ready for dinner which was definitely needed given the feast we were about to have. We went to an osteria, or family restaurant, that specialized in STEAK. I loved its informal arrangement; we sat close and at the same table as an Italian family and an American couple which facilitated some great conversations. That italian kid was molto artistico! He drew some surprisingly intricate drawings of many Lord of the Rings characters that were easily better than what I could draw or anyone his own age.
Then came the food. The osteria has a menu designed to be shared, based on ordering huge slabs of meat to split amongst the table. Our server (who looked like an Italian George Carlin) first brought out our uncooked "chunk" and it weighed 1,750 g- close to 60 ounces!! We agreed on the size and price and he fired it up rather quickly; it came out beautifully rare and tender. I was shocked that we were able to eat virtually all of it and it felt like a huge accomplishment. Overall the dinner was both interesting and delicious; I would recommend it to anyone (except maybe any vegetarian or vegan). Afterwards we just headed home because the town was basically closed.
Monday (today): This morning we got up extra early to drive to Chiusi so I could get dropped off on the train back to Rome to make it to my 12 o'clock class. Like always, I am thrilled to go back to the excitement that Rome has to offer and I can't wait to show my parents around some of my favorite spots. I'm also excited for new places and monuments because there is always more to see in this very special place.
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