I'm here in Siena. An absolutely majestic city. I know no more than 3 or 4 streets: how to get to school and back, but don't care. The piazza del campo (of which I've yet to take pictures), is superb; I've found myself standing in the center, walking in a circle, to try in take in all there is. It's the site of the palio, a twice annual horse race of immense importance for all in Siena. Walking through the city is an experience unto itself. The walls still stand from medieval (sp?) times, virtually unchanged. Modern shops and bars (an Italian bar serves coffee and sandwiches) fill the void left by time and war and generations past, but the streets remain unchanged; a maze of pathways that appear as carved into formerly, one block of stone.
I'll not tell you that the countryside is entirely alien to those I've seen before. But there is something in the way that rolling hills are met by the vibrant hues of lonely villas and towns built into cliffs. It's hard to describe the exact difference that makes these sights so profound. The lack of a modern roads (not to say there is a lack, as one can get to any place) that in America divide and subdivide every community and city and for that matter the fact that I've yet to even see the highway. Or perhaps that the only chain I've seen, AGIP (a gas station), doesn't crowd every street corner. I've seen two with a considerable distance between them; this is not shell, of which there are often 3-4 within an area of a few miles. There are two McDonalds. The one in the center is closed, maybe forever, cause it doesn't matter to these people to have food this fast. When you order a coffee, you stand at the counter, for as long as you want, and only pay after you are finished. A different mindset altogether.
This stage of an encounter is still infatuation, and I must say that it's hit me hard.
Awesome pics!!!
ReplyDelete