Off to Siena

On Tuesday, March 27, after spending the morning working, we decided to hop on a train to go to Siena. Spontaneous road trips are always so much fun!

We arrived at the train station just as a Siena train was about to depart, with just minutes to buy our tickets and board. But we made it, arriving in Siena in time for a late lunch. When we arrived, we walked through the medieval streets of Siena as I tried to duplicate the wonderful walking tour we were given on our school day trip to Siena. I think I was able to do a pretty good job!

We had lunch at one of the cafés that dot the famous campo. Tons of school groups were in town, and we enjoyed watching the kids having so much fun hanging out in the sun (well, sort of sun, once in a while) in the campo.

After lunch we went directly to the Torre del Mangia, Siena’s famous belltower. This belltower, at 330 feet, is the second highest in Italy. It was our goal to climb its 505 steps to the top. Hey, we had to work off that pizza we had for lunch somehow!

This magnificent tower was built between 1338 and 1348 by the brothers Muccio and Francesco di Rinaldo. However, the tower gets its name from the tower’s first bell ringer, an extremely lazy man who was nicknamed Mangiaguadagni, which translates to “eat the profits.” He couldn’t be that lazy if he actually made it to the top to ring that bell! And now it was our turn to give it a try!

We set off up the narrow circular stairway, climbing those steep stone steps. Fortunately, they regulate how many people are allowed in the tower at once, which makes the climb much more pleasant. And we were the first to reach the top in the group we entered with. In fact, we made it to the top MUCH more quickly than the others, even though most were much younger than we. And I must say that the climb seemed much easier than when I climbed the Duomo back in early February, even though there are more steps. Could it possibly be that I’m getting in better shape with all the walking and climbing I do in Florence every day?

Anyway, before we knew it, we were at the top, with the campo and all of Siena and her red roofs spread out dizzyingly below us. And at the moment we reach the top and looked over the edge, that great bell suddenly rang. It scared the heck out of us! And once we got over the shock, we just laughed and laughed, thrilled that we had been there at that exact moment. What an experience!

After descending the tower, we decided to tour the Palazzo Pubblico, which is Siena’s Town Hall. It still serves in this capacity, but the state rooms are open to the public. It’s fascinating to walk around the rooms, admiring the art.



Our favorite was a pair of frescoes by Ambrogio Lorenzette in the Sala della Pace (Peace Room). The frescoes are entitled Allegory of Good and Bad Government. The fresco depicting the good government is bright and cheery; the people are cheerful, the city is well protected, the shops are prosperous, the crops in the fields are abundant, and everything is clean and well-maintained. The fresco depicting the bad government is quite the opposite; people lay dead in the streets, crimes are being committed, the fields are burned, the buildings are gutted, invaders stand ready to attack the city, and everyone looks miserable. This is a remarkable piece that still has relevance today.

The afternoon passed much to quickly, and soon it was time to return to Florence. When we returned, we ended our day with dinner at the trattoria across the street from my apartment. This was Chip’s first time here, and he loved it as much as I have these past few months. He even tried rabbit!