A Day Under the Tuscan Sun

Because I had poorly timed my trip to Belgium, I had an extra day to spare over Thanksgiving break.  Therefore, I decided to not only vacation in Belgium Friday through Sunday, but also to take a day trip to Siena in Tuscany on Thanksgiving Day.  So I got up very early Thursday, boarded a fast train to Florence, and then took a regional train to Siena.

Although I was tired from travelling for three hours, I was very excited to arrive in Siena.  Even with the fog in the morning, there were some stunningly beautiful views from the top of the hill.  Overlooking a magnificent valley, it was very easy to see why people who went on my program’s study trip to Tuscany loved the town so much.

After mindlessly wandering the streets of Siena, I stumbled upon a café in the center of town where I decided to have lunch.  When the chef decided to give me a complementary stew before my meal, I thought the meal was going to be phenomenal, since the stew had so many flavors, herbs, and spices, as well as contained tomato and onion.  However, I was very disappointed with my steak; it was overdone, there was no red in the center, and it came with vegetables that were not that fresh.  I will make sure to remember this experience, however, since it reminds me that when I go on trips and culinary adventures, I should do a bit more research before going.

Once I finished my sub-par lunch, I decided to head over to the Duomo.  Since I had visited Florence the weekend prior, I was able to compare the two buildings.  Even though Florence’s Duomo is larger in stature, the Duomo in Siena is much more ornate on the inside; in fact, it even has a separate room full of art that was done in the same style as the Villa Borghese in Rome.

Upon finishing up at the Duomo, I decided that I wanted to try and stop back in Florence so that I could drink red wine, eat cured meats, and go to my favorite gelato place along the river.  So I boarded a regional train back to Florence, and in less than two hours, I ended up at a wine cellar just off the river in Florence.  There, for 10 euros, I got a glass of Chianti, a meat and cheese plate, as well as some other little snacks.  The wine, of course, was full-bodied, robust, and had hints of oak in it.  Afterwards, I got gelato by the river, walked around downtown Florence, and boarded a fast train back to Rome so that I could travel to Belgium the next day.

Ciao e buona giornata!

-I