Siena

Now that I'm back in the US and visited my family over the Holidays, I will try to finish the blog posts about my Italian adventures.  Sorry for the hiatus.  Fortunately, I kept a journal (handwritten) while I was there, so I can refer back to my observations.  And of course, there is the archive of photographs to remind me of specifics.

I left Florence on November 18, 2019, and headed to Siena.  I had reserved a car with Hertz for the remainder of the trip (to be returned in Milan).  Since this section of the trip wanders through wine country, I wanted to be able to drive around to see the territory and visit the vineyards and wineries. Fortunately, the Hertz location in Florence was only a block from my Airbnb, so it was an easy task to pick it up.  A nice Fiat 500L with just enough space in the back to hold my luggage.

Readers may remember that I bemoaned the multitude of staircases in the Uffizi and the Pitti.  During those ascents, I made liberal use of the handrails to help pull myself up.  This, in retrospect, turned out to be a mistake.  Those handrails had been touched by many international travelers who had deposited various and sundry germs.  I had picked up one or more of these germs and, as I was leaving Florence, was feeling a bit under the weather (more later).

The drive to Siena takes about 2 hours at the speed limit, which is a leisurely 90kph (54mph).  Of course, the Italians may be famous for leisurely dining, but not leisurely driving.  Put them behind the wheel of an automobile, and a leisurely pace is the last thing on their minds.  The road had two lanes in each direction, so I could remain leisurely while they zipped past me.  I suffered only a few scowls for my plodding pace.

One planning detail in moving from place to place is that the check-out time is usually much earlier than the next place's check-in time.  So while the trip took maybe 2 hours, I had 4 hours to get there. What to do with the extra 2 hours?  Well, it happens that one of the largest wine producers in Tuscany, Antinori, has a tasting room, winery, and restaurant about 1/3 of the way from Florence to Siena.  What better way to wile away 2 hours, than visiting a winery!  Here are some pictures of their headquarters and (relatively) new facility in Chianti...

Building designed to blend in with landscape

Spiral stairs based on the Fibonacci sequence

Ristorante Rinuccio

When I stopped, I found that there weren't any spots left for tours in English.  But they were happy to make a reservation in two days' time.  So I will be back.  I was able to have lunch in their restaurant, Rinuccio, which featured.... What else, but a white truffle menu!  These were not Alba white truffles, however, but a local variety from Tuscany (I didn't know there were any white truffles there).  Nonetheless, the meal was quite good, the service was excellent, and you could get pretty much any Antinori wine by-the-glass.  In this case a Barbaresco by Prunotto of Piemonte.

Tuscan white truffle on poached egg at Rinuccio

Antinori started as a Tuscan producer, but in recent years has purchased vineyards and wineries in several other Italian wine-producing regions (Pian della Vigna in Montalcino, Tenuto Guado al Tasso in Bolgheri, Castello della Sala in Orvieto, Prunotto in Piemonte, and Tormaresca in Salento), in California (Antica and Stag's Leap Wine Cellars in Napa), a partnership with Col Solare in Washington state, and several other countries.

After such a lunch, the remainder of the trip to Siena was anticlimactic.  Except, of course, as I approached the town and needed to navigate to the Airbnb.  Fortunately, the Airbnb had provided detailed instructions about where to park, how to deal with the ZTL (Zona a Traffico Limitato--a zone in the center of many towns where car traffic is limited to residents, taxis, and deliveries).  I parked, checked in, and then drove within the ZTL to the Airbnb to transfer my luggage.  The Airbnb provided an electronic form to obtain a one-hour exemption from the ZTL for that purpose.

Siena is a hill-town, or I should say hills-town, as it bestrides 3 hills, which leads to interesting walks, which go up and down these 3 topographical features.  I stayed just off the Piazza Matteoti, which is on top of one of the hills in the northwestern part of town.  This turned out to be an excellent location as it is at one end of the commercial district and many good restaurants and a grocery a block away.  The Piazza del Campo (where the Palio, horse race, is held) is downhill.  The Duomo is at the top of another hill.  And the Basilica di San Francesco is at the top of the third hill.

The second day, I visited the Duomo.  Duomo hill is quite a bit higher than the one with Piazza Matteoti; it was a slog.  Once there, though, there is the Duomo with its mosaic floor and the Gate of Heaven (at the top of the Duomo), the Duomo treasury, and the Piccolomini Library. 

Siena Duomo exterior

Siena Duomo main altar

View of one side of the Piccolomini Library

The Piccolomini Library houses a number of illustrated manuscripts, many containing Gregorian Chant.

Ceiling of the Piccolomini Library

One Wall of the Piccolomini Library

Siena with the Basilica di San Francesco on the next hill over

 My third day, I returned to Antinori for the tour and tasting.

Aging barrels for red wine (see stripe)

The tour of the wine making facilities included the fermentation tanks and aging barrels.  All the wine made here was from the Chianti region.  Since this was November, harvest was months gone, all the grapes had been crushed, and fermentation was done.  The wine was resting in barrels for its requisite aging cycle (depending on DOCG and winemaker).

Fermentation vats

 

Tour guide and a larger aging barrel

There was a small display of the bark of the cork oak tree and a sample showing how corks were extracted from the bark.

Corks from bark

Wines in tasting

I did quite a lot of walking, but Siena would not be complete without the Piazza del Campo, with its famous tower, Torre del Mangia, and where the Palio di Siena takes place.

Piazza del Campo di Siena

This was mid-November and the Christmas markets were being constructed.  There was one in the Piazza Matteoti near where I stayed.  Each one has at least one artisan making nativity scenes from paper mache or wood.

A stall in a Christmas Market

And a capitalist in Siena would be remiss unless a visit was made to the Banca Monte dei Pasche, the world's oldest or second oldest (there is disagreement on this :-) bank, founded 1472.  The building dates from 1624.

Original Banca Monte dei Pasche di Siena

On the fourth day (of five) the bug I caught in Florence could be denied no longer.  I mostly stayed at the Airbnb for a couple of days, during which time I discovered the wonders of the Italian medical system.  I had walked over to the grocery to get some soup and water.  While standing in the checkout line, I began to feel woozy, warm, and sweaty.  So I sat down on the floor (to avoid a possible fall), and immediately pandemonium broke out--everyone asked me if I was okay.  Store personnel came by (one spoke some English, but wasn't up to a medical discussion).  I guess I was quite pale and not looking well.  They called an ambulance.  It arrived with two technicians and an MD (yes, a doctor came with the ambulance).  She didn't speak much English, but I was able to convey via sign language and my broken Italian what had happened.  She took a short medical history, took my vitals, and then transferred me to the ambulance.  Once there, they did a couple more tests and an EKG.  The doctor looked at everything and told me that all was normal and suggested that I'd been dehydrated.  She said I had been very pale when she arrived, but my color had returned; how was I feeling?  I said okay.  Then she asked if I wanted to go the ER or to go home?  I said home.  After ensuring I was able to stand and walk, she gave me a copy of her report and the EKG and bid me goodbye.  No paperwork.  No insurance questions.  They did take my name and email address, but as of this writing I have received no bills or other inquiries.  As I think back on the episode and compare it to what would have happened had I been at home in the USA... Well, let's not.

Before I left Siena, I saw a bookseller's stall at the Christmas Market in Piazza Matteoti that reminded me of my friends of the Rainier Club Literary Committee.

Chi legge ha le Gambe Lunghe -- "Who reads has long legs"

On Saturday, November 23, 2019, I left Siena and drove to Montalcino, home to the famous wine, Brunello di Montalcino.