Italia Siena

... to view a famous Abbey and Chris was none too pleased having tried to get us out the door early knowing the Abby shut at 12.00 to get there at 11.55 and not be allowed in –opps we were all in disgrace for a few minutes and have made a mental note to be vigilant about getting out the door earlier. Hope his threat of going off on his own tomorrow is idle as he is the only one who can drive in Italy.. Went to the internet café, where to get a ...

Good Morning!
Everybody's vote for favorite city has been Siena....overall. Great parking, a fantastic dome, a terrific plaza, and the most spectacular view of Tuscany. From the top of of a dome building, we could see miles and miles.
Lucca was great because we were able to enjoy it in the daylight this time.....with good maps, we were able to get in ...

Check out some pics. I've taken over an hour to post 20 pictures that is how incompetant that I am online!

I'll do more when I can, or when I get home they'll be all gettin on facebook. =)

Missing everyone today. It's my ONE MONTH DATE!

ACK

Much love!
Benita

... in the barn throughout the day. My horse-y responsiblity was Geraldo, a giant white horse with sweet itch, and due to me being a massage therapist I was given the task of washing his sore spots everyday as I must have strong hands. He certainly became my buddy, as I put it how could he not love me if I scratch his bum for him everyday! He constantly tried to nip me though, but that's just him being a big dork and a trouble maker. Last night as it was my last ...

... The historic centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and was the first European city to ban motor traffic from it's centre in 1966.
Siena was founded by the son of Remus and as in Rome the symbol for the wolf feeding the twins Romulus and Remus is everywhere.

Siena is still surrounded by its medieval walls and through its gates we entered making our way to Il Campo. Resembling an arena the sloping Piazza del Campo has been Siena's social centre since the 14th century and is ...

... guy said to his wife, "Well, it's not pizza, but it is Italian." It just seemed like such a funny statement to make while in Italy. Like this couple had been searching and searching and their long sojourn to find Italian food was finally complete. Hello! Look around, there aren't any Chinese or Sushi or Mexican restaurants. They're ALL Italian! It still makes me laugh.

Here are a few quick pix from the horse riding trip. Talk to you all again soon -- from Firenze!

... then reds; Piancoleto and their biggest boldest 100% merlot Austero. Last was a white dessert, 5 grape blend, "Pertusa." It had an intense straw yellow color and a broad and complex taste with rich notes of mature fruit and sweet spices. That's how I would describe it anyway. We picked a good time to come because we also snacked on the left over appetizers from the previous group. Francesca was very nice and it was a good first wine tasting for a young ...

... striped and the ceiling is a dark blue with yellow stars. It's a really cool effect. The floor is completely marble with ornate artwork depicting different scenes from history and the bible. Along the left side there is the Piccolomini Alter which is a room dedicated to St. John. The room was built to host a very special holy relic- the right arm of St. John. The morbidity does not end there as you will hear in a minute. So at this point I'm pretty tired and decide to just hit up ...

... Why it amused us so much I don't know but it did. It probably went a little to far when Andre decided to refer to parts of may anatomy as my Poggibonsi's ... I am hoping he wasn't inferring that I had become a little Podgy myself! Siena is a lovely university town with a solid banking industry as its support. Collecting tithes from the diocese and 'tending' the good of pilgrims meant the church needed bankers to looking after their vast amounts of wealth. The city developed ...

... the phone, so I assumed it was her. I opened the door and there was this man with bags of stuff. He said, (in Italian), "Oh, I didn't think anyone would be here." I had the door half closed at this time and asked him what he was here for. He mentioned the bathroom and I asked for clarification. He said he was going to paint it white. I asked him to come back the next day, because I was creeped out (and rightly so). He looked disappointed ...