Siena: Charming Hills, Local Pride, and the Palio!

Saturday morning, we got out of Lucca early and took several trains to Siena; upon getting to town, we took approximately a dozen long escalators up the hill into town–it was like something out of the Jetsons!  A long winding hike back down the hill got us to our hotel, which was run by nuns.  The hike was confusing, and we agreed that we need to get a better map of each city in the future before trying to navigate out of the guidebook map alone.

Our hotel was super clean, quiet, and comfortable–perfect after a restless night in Lucca.  We checked in, then went next door for a great pizza lunch–mozzarella and porcini in white sauce.  Refueled–we also had espresso, which should probably be off-limits for me–we headed to one of Siena’s main attractions (really, the entire hillside of Siena is an attraction in itself!), the Duomo.

The Duomo is a mix of medieval exterior (white, green, black stripes) with a mix of medieval and Renaissance interior.  It was huge, and it was originally planned to be even larger (MUST BEAT FLORENCE!!) until the Black Plague wiped out a third of the population.  One exterior wall leading to the adjacent museum gives a hint of just how big this church would have been. 

Inside the church, we saw lots of good art.  I have found it interesting that most of the Biblical figures in church paintings have Italian faces, but I guess artists drew the faces that they knew.  The marble floors are supposed to be beautiful, but they were covered up–possibly in case of horse poop when the neighborhood horse entered the church to be blessed for the Palio (a sign of good luck if the horse leaves a big holy pile).  The dome rose up into octagonal panels culminating in a gold star.  Works by Pisano, Bernini, Michelangelo, and Donatello also filled the church; interesting that these guys worked both in Florence and Siena, the fierce rival towns!

From the church, we headed to the famous square, Il Campo, where we would spend much of our day.  Described as “the heart” of Siena, the square is huge and really does pump people through the center of town.  Shops and temporary bleachers lined the circular square (wait, huh?) with a huge hangout area in the middle.  City Hall included a 330 ft. clock tower, and the “Fountain of Joy” sat opposite the hall, with ornate statues that pigeons patiently use as water fountains.

We were extremely lucky to be in Siena for the prelimaries of the famous Palio horse race (3 laps around Il Campo).  We spent a good deal of time watching the town prepare for the race, from the workers setting up the square, to the neighborhood party with numerous gallons of wine, to the group of high school girls who sat singing in the bleachers for hours.  By the time of the race, the entire square was packed, and the locals were still entering in grand style.

 

As each horse was led in, the neighborhood men followed, belting out their songs (the women sat separately but sang with equal spirit).  As the race grew closer, the competing groups continued to try to outsing one another.  We tried to think of a similar event that evoked such positive communal pride, but nothing really came to mind, and the crowd remained extremely civil to rival groups.  It was awesome!

Finally, the horses lined up for the race, and fans went even more nuts!  The cannon erupted, and the horses shot out onto the circuit.  After lap 1, right at the corner where we stood, the winning horse exploded past the the former leader, and the new leader soon  lapped a couple of other horses.  It was no contest from there, and several horses–all of whom were riden bareback–let up, possibly to save it for the finals two days later.  The race ended as the leader crossed the finish, and people of all neighborhoods crashed the course in order to walk out of Il Campo behind their horse, serenading it along the way.  It was absolutely incredible, and we were very lucky to experience it! 

Siena eclipsed our expectations, and we both hope to revisit this city again someday.  It blew us away!