Day 13- Sienna

Day 13 Monday

On the bus again! After school on Monday we took a trip to Sienna, which is in the Tuscany area, (about an hour away from Florence). Sienna was by far my favorite place, it was so colorful and ancient. The sun was shinning over the hillsides, and the churches were magnificent. Our tour guide was so cute, she was wearing pink lipstick, pink eye shadow, a pink scarf, and a black cat hat with pink accents. Originally from Sienna, she gave us great insider information. There are 17 “neighborhoods” (the real Italian word can’t be translated, so neighborhood is the closest word) that divide the city. Each part has an animal representing it, such as the giraffe, the caterpillar, the rhino, the fox, and the goose. Each August and July, 10 “neighborhoods” (chosen by lottery) race on bareback horses around the central piazza. They cover the track in dirt and in one area place mattresses for the safety of the jockeys, because they often fly off the horse at a specific sharp corner. However, even if the Jockey does fall off, the horse can still win the race!

After the tour we went shopping, again there were a lot of sales! But mostly we windowed shopped since we are all poor college students suffering from the horrible exchange rate. The best part of the night was our snacks! My friend Lauren and I have fallen in love with the gummy bears here! Then we also fell upon something we call “fried rice balls.” The Italian word, I have no idea, but all I have to say is that they are MOUTH-WATERING! The inside was similar to a rice pudding and the outer shell was breaded like a cheese curd but not as much, then topped with sugar! These special treats only come once a year during Carnivale, a large festival celebrated in all of Europe (but each city celebrates it differently). Carnival starts on February 6th so I will let you know how that goes!