Postcard from Siena

When we leave the apartment in the morning, map in hand, there's no telling where we'll end up. The good news is that neither of us get too bent out of shape about losing our way - a good thing because we spend much of our time trying to figure out where we are and how we got there. The most common thing we say to each other is - NO! That's the wrong direction! It's amazing how difficult it is for us to navigate without the familiar grid.

This week, we visited Siena. We found our way to the bus station in time to get our scheduled bus. Once there however, we discovered that the resturant where we had booked lunch was 4 km out of town! They had told us it was across the street from the bus station; we assumed they meant the one where the bus from Florence stops. Wrong! After a ten minute discussion about what to do, we took a cab! The decision was justified because our lunch couldn't have been better: roasted pigeon on polenta and a saddle of rabbit served with local artichokes--delicious.

We really enjoyed wandering the streets of this medieval town. This is the place where the popular horse race the 'Palio' is run each summer. The colorful banners represent the flags of the 17 local neighborhoods or "contrata". People identify with these like a tribe. Each has a coat of arms, a flag, motto and a patron saint. In addition, specific crafts and guilds are associated with each area. The neighbourhoods mark their boundaries with the flag and many will only marry within their associated contrate. But the highlight each year is the Palio and what a race it is. The entire festival lasts for about a week and begins when the Piazza is filled with dirt and the stands are built for the spectators. Lots are drawn to see who will get to ride which horse and strategies and plots begin for how to win a race which runs for approximately 19 minutes! It's a day of pagentry, filled with excitement and the winner gets to proudly fly the winning banner all over their Contrate! We were here during the week of preparations one year and the level of excitement was electric. Our visit this year seemed much calmer.

So, back to our adventures. Heading for the bus we decided we had just enough time for a local Gelato--notice, we believed we were on the right track! It soon became clear that not only were we going in circles, but we were going in entirely the wrong direction. Our hope of catching the 6:10 was lost! Asking directions here didn't get us anywhere, because others like us, were just as perplexed by the twisty windy streets. In the end, we did manage to find the bus station, just in time for the next bus! The adventure continues--stay tuned.