We also are scheduled to have lunch at Avignonesi. Their "Common Table" is a private restaurant where guests can enjoy a real Tuscan meal and appreciate the Avignonesi wines. All the dishes are prepared on a daily basis and according to the goods available on each season, with the typical traditional taste of this part of Tuscany. We'll be guided through a tour of the farm before enjoying the meal in a peaceful atmosphere.
A view from where we'll be eating lunch:
This list is what the winery produces:
White wines
Cortona Sauvignon Blanc DOC
"Il Marzocco", Cortona Chardonnay DOC
Red wines
"Rosso", IGT Toscana
Rosso di Montepulciano DOC
Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOCG
Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOCG Riserva "Grandi Annate"
"Desiderio", Cortona Merlot DOC
"50&50", IGT Toscana
Sweet wines
Vin Santo di Montepulciano DOC
Vin Santo di Montepulciano DOC "Occhio di Pernice"
Spirits
Grappa da uve di Vino Nobile di Montepulciano
Grappa da uve di Vin SantoExtravirgin olive oil
Then it's on to Siena!
Siena is one of those picture-perfect medieval walled cities which has a more modern (and less interesting) city surrounding it. It’s just over 40 miles outside Florence. Siena is a classic Tuscan medieval hill town and one of the most popular. It's a pretty town with a large fan-shaped piazza, beautiful cathedral, pedestrian streets with shops, and the second highest medieval bell tower in Italy (with 505 steps to the top). Siena is accessible by either train or bus, but the bus stops in the center while the train station is downhill from the center (with a connecting bus).
The SITA company runs the buses between Florence and Siena, and the departure point in Florence is just across the street from the city’s main train station, Santa Maria Novella. Siena’s bus stop is at Piazza Gramsci, well inside the old city walls.
The journey between the two cities takes roughly 1.25 hours on the fast bus. This is a direct shot from Florence to Siena, so you’d think it would be the one with the name “diretta” – but no, that name is reserved for the bus that goes from Florence to Siena via a few other stops, including Poggibonsi. Also confusing is the fact that the slower train is also sometimes called the “accelerate.”
So we need to make sure we’re getting on the real fast bus, not just the one with the fast-sounding name.
One other note – the SITA website lists some of the departure times as being covered by the TRA.IN company rather than the SITA company, but they’re all listed under the fast bus times – so it shouldn’t be an issue. We just don’t need to get thrown off if we see the giant word TRA.IN on the side of a bus (which is clearly a bus and not a train).
SITA buses leave Florence for Siena 2-3 times per hour starting at 06:45 and the last bus leaves Florence at 20:15. Fewer buses run on weekends and during holidays, but for the most part you shouldn’t have any trouble getting a bus to Siena just about any time you want to go.
A bus ticket from Florence to Siena costs €6.50-7.00 for a one-way ticket.
What to Do in Siena
Perhaps the most famous thing to do in Siena is the Palio di Siena, which is a bareback horse race run twice each summer. The tradition dates back to medieval times, and it’s a competition between the various neighborhoods (contrade) in the city. While the Palio has become a tourist attraction for some, it’s very much a local party and not something that’s done for visitors. In other words, you’re welcome to join in the fun, but don’t expect this to be a festival catering to outsiders. And if you do decide to brave the Palio crowds, be sure to book your room well in advance – the place is packed to the gills.
Attractions in Siena we shouldn’t miss are:
Il Campo – This is where the Palio (a horse race run in Siena's Piazza del Campo on July 2 and August 16) takes place, and even when the racing is nowhere in sight this piazza is the heart of Siena. Excellent picnic & general hang-out spot, great people-watching.
Duomo di Siena – The colorfully striped exterior is just a taste of what’s inside; be sure to tour the Duomo Museum, because it’s only with a museum visit that you get a glimpse of the planned expansion of the cathedral (it was to be bigger than Florence’s by a long shot, had the plague not killed off the construction crew).
Baptistery – Unlike most baptisteries, this one isn’t in front of the cathedral – it’s actually underneath the back of the Duomo, propping up one end of the big church.
Basilica di San Domenico – This church is nothing to look at from the outside, and almost as equally boring on the side, were it not for two body parts of homegirl Saint Catherine which are on display. San Domenico has her head and one finger (no word on which finger), while the rest of the saint’s body is in Rome.
Civic Museum – Housed in the City Hall (the building with the tower at the base of Il Campo), this features some interesting Sienese frescoes, including depictions of both good and bad government.
City Hall Tower – The tower of the City Hall building itself, also called Torre del Mangia, is worth the climb for the view overlooking the city.
St. Catherine’s House – Catherine lived in Siena in the 1300s, and you can visit her home. It’s unlikely that it looked like it does now when she actually lived in it, but that doesn’t make it any less popular with pilgrims.
Pinacoteca Nazionale – Siena’s period of artistic excellence is Gothic rather than Renaissance, and this gallery shows off works in the typical Sienese style from the 12th through the 15th centuries.
Then, Kriss leaves us on the 21st sadly, but we'll have most of that entire day to play and do whatever we want to do in Florence with her at our leisure.
Then on the 22nd we'll head to CINQUE TERRE!
No comments:
Post a Comment