This year was a big anniversary milestone for my husband and I plus it was 30 years ago since I first went to Italy. So we decided to go to Siena as I had never visited the city and then to see family in Campania.
I had always wanted to visit the Tuscan city of Siena as I worked with someone who went there, and I was aware of the medieval city design and architecture as well as the famous Palio di Siena race in the Piazza Del Campo. The city is a UN World Heritage site as ‘an embodiment of a medieval city’, and great for understanding the traditions of the contrades, city zones, community, family and most of all…the preserved traditions and creativity. Born out of medieval sports and traditions, the Palio occurs in the summer. It is taken seriously by the Sienese from the motifs and symbols of the contrades. There are fabrics and colours and good old fashion brand in the clothing, flags and some of the neighbourhoods we walked through in Siena. Two of the restaurants we visited has homage to the Palio mainly showing people, the horses and the representation of various contrades. I would still like to visit Tuscany in future and who knows, ,maybe I will be there one day for the Palio.
The Piazza del Campo itself is spectacular and scalloped or ‘D’ shaped. The medieval building surrounding it encourages excitement and awe of the epicentre with the imposing Tower and piazza. It is also not flat as Siena is situated on a hill. There was activity on the foggy night as well as the sunny daytime walks. The restaurants and bars all seem to have a long history of entertaining, feeding and providing for those visiting the piazza. And like some other model of piazzas – this is one that truly was special and spectacular in our modern times too!
I love walking along the street with the beautiful architect and they were still very well maintained. The street were narrow but still wide enough for some car traffic but the core historic centre was mainly pedestrianised. What made it extra special was once we had arrived at our lovely hotel, we were able to take a walk with fog around the city street and the twinkling of the Christmas lights and decorations. It truly was magical! There were not many tourists but I can tell those visiting was also captured by the beauty of the lights, fog and festive decorations.
I have a bias, rose-tinted view and love of Italy to visit. However, you can really see the effort and art of show windows of independent, and even retail chain shops in Italy. It is great to have a walk and to see all the shops. I was able to spot something interesting each time I went for a walk along the many streets. In Siena, even the bookshop had a great history of once beginning outside the original city borders although it was not far from the Piazza del Campo. As it was Christmas time, it was lovely to see families and people walking and enjoying the sights, restaurants and even ice skating in a ring in a nearby park.
I had been to Florence 20 years ago but we decided to go for the day. There was transport strikes the day before our trip but luckily we were advised that it easy to get the Rapido Bus from Siena to Florence. The bus was not expensive and a very pleasant trip to and from Siena. I love looking out at the winter colours on the Tuscan trees, hills and fields. The drive was not flat and the Tuscan countryside was really made of rolling hills, mist, fog, sunsets and beautiful vistas.
Florence is bigger, lively and very busy compared to Siena. The last time I went it was April, and I have fabulous memories as it was more relaxed as we spent a few days in an apartment in a villa near the Baboli Gardens. I loved seeing the sights again and walking around the centre. Having studied the Renaissance in Trinidad for A ‘levels, I know the significance of Florence as the birthplace of the Renaissance, innovation, creativity, art, music and science etc.
Walking around the city, you can’t miss the beautiful architecture and spectacular openings onto more piazzas, buildings, churches and great shops. The Ponte Vecchio bridge is a great piece of history on its’ own with the amazing jewellery shops that tempted passers-by as they traverse across the river Po. I love seeing the places I recalled from 20 years ago and it was reassuring to see some things still the same but that other small aspects had changed. I had always planned to visit Florence again as the first time we went – there is not a single photograph as we had a problem with our old-fashioned camera (non-digital). At least this time, I was able to have some photos.
The final part of our stay was to make our way down to Caserta in Campania to visit family that we have not seen for a while. We took the Flix Bus from Siena on a cold foggy morning to Rome, and then with one other bus change to Caserta. It was nice to see the city again and it was my first time there in winter. It was still sunny apart from one day when we got caught out walking in the rain. We stayed near the Royal Palace in Caserta – which I thoroughly recommend that you visit, but it is better in warmer climate for the amazing gardens. It was good to stay central to walk to all the great shops, restaurants and to visit family.
I had visited Caserta in 1995 and again, the shops make an extra special effort for displays and showcases. There were many times I wanted to buy something but was busy getting from A to B. There are obviously the impact of online buying and other changes in recent years with some closed shops but this is having an impact everywhere. It was nice to see the festive decorations, cafes and people visiting for the nightly walk to see the shops and to meet friends etc.
My time Caserta was mainly to catch up with family and therefore, it was really nice to see them and spend time reminiscing on stories and remembering those who are no longer with us anymore. The fact that we are making our won memories now made me happy that we at least found time to visit this year and see those dear to us.
I have now been back to London where I spent the rest of my Christmas holidays. However, I thought that this little time was truly special to me and was definitely a great way to spend some time in December (when I am usually working). I hope you enjoyed me sharing this trip highlights with you. Before I end, I wanted to wish you all the best for the new year!
Connecting the Dots 