| Italy 2008 |
| Siena: What's There to Do? |
| "Experience, travel - these are as education in themselves." - Euripides |
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| Click on the fazzoletto of the Nobile Contrada of the Bruco above to return to the main Siena Page |
We were in Siena to study Italian, and we did so, every morning for two weeks.
However, class let out at noon, and we had the rest of the day to spend enjoying the
city, the countryside and the bits of language we had newly learned. We spent quite
a lot of time with the people from our class...especially Roly, Alexis and Laura. We
ate dinner together frequently, and took in many of the sights together.
However, class let out at noon, and we had the rest of the day to spend enjoying the
city, the countryside and the bits of language we had newly learned. We spent quite
a lot of time with the people from our class...especially Roly, Alexis and Laura. We
ate dinner together frequently, and took in many of the sights together.
| Our class at dinner...soon to be a familiar sight. |
| The sun is shining...We're in Italy...It's Pimms o'clock! |
Roly took it upon himself to introduce us to Pimms...a drink that we North Americans
had no experience with. After a long search through the wine cellars and liquor
stores of Siena he procured a bottle, and told us to bring fruit, ice and mint. We met
in the Campo on a hot afternoon and we were soon in agreement: on a hot Italian
afternoon a cup of Pimms No. 1 hits the spot.
had no experience with. After a long search through the wine cellars and liquor
stores of Siena he procured a bottle, and told us to bring fruit, ice and mint. We met
in the Campo on a hot afternoon and we were soon in agreement: on a hot Italian
afternoon a cup of Pimms No. 1 hits the spot.
| Roly surrounded by Contrada flags, the tower of the Campo in the background |
| Beneath the Duomo with TJ, Alexis and a very hung over Roly, the day after the Palio |
One of the most enjoyable evenings we spent in Siena was the night that we took an
Italian cooking class through our school. We went out to a local bed and breakfast /
agritourismo, run by the family of one of the school's instructors. We made lasagna,
pesto, bruschetta and a variant of tiera massu, all from scratch. Many of the
ingredients, including the olive oil, came from the family's fields.
Italian cooking class through our school. We went out to a local bed and breakfast /
agritourismo, run by the family of one of the school's instructors. We made lasagna,
pesto, bruschetta and a variant of tiera massu, all from scratch. Many of the
ingredients, including the olive oil, came from the family's fields.
| Making the lasagna. |
| Desert! |
Toppings for the Bruschetta.
| Pesto with home-grown olive oil |
| Enjoying the dinner with classmates and agritourismo guests. |
| A Persian group performing below the Duomo |
At the pool with Roly
Our last night in Siena we went to dinner and then found our way to the Duomo. We
lay on the ground in front of the cathedral, looking up into the midnight sky and
talking. We lay there for quite some time, reluctant to leave each other's company,
knowing that with the morning would come a parting of ways For our money it's one
of the most peaceful, special places in Siena...the Duomo in the dark of the night.
The camera battery was dying, but it had one last picture left to it:
lay on the ground in front of the cathedral, looking up into the midnight sky and
talking. We lay there for quite some time, reluctant to leave each other's company,
knowing that with the morning would come a parting of ways For our money it's one
of the most peaceful, special places in Siena...the Duomo in the dark of the night.
The camera battery was dying, but it had one last picture left to it:
