A bit of history

For all of the posts we have done, we haven't really done any about the city. While we live right outside the city walls, we go into the city center just about every other day. It's a quick bus ride for us (which the kids love) or about 3 minutes by car. Siena is a really beautiful place. The pictures below were taken when we went to dinner the other night right near St. Catherine's house (she's the patron saint of Siena).

All of the buildings in Siena are made of brick that is the reddish color of the local stone. The reddish color is why Crayola created a reddish-brown colored crayon called "burnt sienna".

Siena is also known for its steep streets. Below are pictures of us at dinner the other night. The angle of the street poses a unique challenge for restaurants. They've come up with all sorts of devices for making outdoor dining possible. None of them help to keep a squirmy toddler on a stool that sits on a 45 degree angle, but they certainly provide for an interesting dining experience.

This past Sunday night we went into the city to witness an annual event that could not be missed. Each year there is a drawing to choose the last 3 contrade (neighborhoods) who will race their horse in the Palio. Only 10 of the 17 contrade race their horses each year. (More about the Palio here.) It is one of the first events of the Palio season and it brings the entire city out onto the Campo.

As the results are drawn, trumpets play and the flag of the contrade that is chosen is hung out the window of the town hall. The section of the crowd where that contrade is standing goes crazy. It is quite a site.

The drawing is followed by marching through the streets by the contrade whose horses will run in the Palio. Below are pictures of the Tortoise contrade members marching. The scarves around their necks indicate their contrade. The whole thing is fascinating.