On one of the days, we decided to take the easy way out by joining a local tour to two neighbouring Tuscan towns, Siena and San Gimignano.
First stop, Siena. It is a medieval town that once thrived much more than Florence until the Black Death in 1348 which decimated the population. Florence then dominated the Tuscan scene and Siena did not have enough funds to overhaul its Middle Ages look, which is not a bad thing for tourists today.
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| A very old medieval building which was once owned privately and used as a bank. This is where the first bank of Italy started here in Siena. See the black rings on the wall? They were used by people to chain their horses to. |
Siena's Duomo is a massive Gothic complex and we did a quick tour inside. A very majestic cathedral in a nice shade of pink :)
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| Siena's Duomo |
Perhaps the more popular is the Piazza del Campo which is a huge public square made famous with its biannual Palio horse race. This tradition has been there since the Middle Ages. And this whole piazza will be fully packed (you need to get your ticket months in advance.) On normal days like the one which we were there, people sit around on the gently sloping square sipping coffee, reading, or people watching.
Second stop, San Gimignano. This is the epitome of the perfect Italian hill town. This town is surrounded by patchwork fields and vineyards, lovely view of the rolling Tuscan hills.
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| Rolling Tuscan hills |
Unfortunately we got too lazy and didn't have much time to explore although it is a very small town. We walked along the shops and eventually settled down for a hot drink and chatted before making out way back to the tour bus.
And this wraps up my Tuscany trip :)
First stop, Siena. It is a medieval town that once thrived much more than Florence until the Black Death in 1348 which decimated the population. Florence then dominated the Tuscan scene and Siena did not have enough funds to overhaul its Middle Ages look, which is not a bad thing for tourists today.
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