July 7-10: Siena, Italy (By Jeff)

Siena was not the local secret that we had hoped but rather another huge tourist attraction with the most expensive accommodation we had yet experienced in Europe. The city itself is beautiful and much of the infrastructure seems to have been built in medieval times with huge stone buildings and still some cobblestone roads. Our first full day in Siena was dedicated to exploring the city and checking out the various sites while taking a day to relax and go at our own pace. A specialty in the region is call Fiorentina Steak, which is sold at a minimum of 1 kilogram (2.2 lbs), meant for at least two people. We heard it was delicious, so we of course had to try it. It arrived sliced and sizzling on a burning hot skillet, which continued to cook the steak as it sat on our table. It was absolutely delicious and deserves the hype.

As a city, there is not much to see aside from the huge plaza with a towering clock tower and church, but that the major attraction of this area is checking out the Tuscan countryside. We had got advice from a couple German guys, who had lived there in Siena, we met at dinner the night before and reserved a rental car to go check out various town in the Tuscan region the next day. This was undeniably the best decision we made in Siena. We visited several towns in the area: Buonconvento, Montalcino, Pienza, and Montepulciano. The views of the countryside as we drove to each of these towns are gorgeous as you can see endless green for miles in each direction. Montepulciano was our favorite, as there were many gourmet shops giving out samples and wine tastings. We ended up buying three very cheap bottles at one place which also gave a tour of their cellar, and gave us tastes of practically all their wines. It was a great afternoon, but was unfortunately capped off with a frustrating time trying to return the rental car with all of the roundabouts and one way streets. We took the rest of the night easy and headed off to Rome the next day.


Tuscan countryside


Fiorentina steak!




Main square in Siena