Today we are going to check out Siena and then make our way to Firenze (Florence)! We had arranged a 4pm checkout (comes with my level in Marriott Hotels) and the front desk clerk had wonderfully suggested that she could get a pass for us to enter the Siena city limits, which like most Italian cities has a ZTL or Zona a Traffico Limitato which means residents only. So we were able to park next to a church just inside the city walls. Once we started walking we found all sorts of other parking spots where we also could have parked that were open – which was not the case in Rome! The challenge with finding these spots is you have to know where you are going (unless you are lucky like we were in Montepulciano parking just outside of the city gate) as these city streets are TINY and lots of tourists are wandering around. We first waled to the church in Siena and again, a stripped church! Then we walked down a VERY STEEP hill (which I was dreading coming back up!) towards the city square, which really is almost round! There we walked around, I bought a couple of souvenirs and I had ANOTHER gluten free ice cream cone! Such a luxury! Then we decided to head back to the car which thank goodness was only a slight uphill climb over distance instead of the two steep hills that I had come down. Remember I have only one functioning break from my fall early on in our trip! As we drove out of Siena Old Town we followed one of the “ambulances” which had brought the people who used wheelchairs to the town square. Wow – such an antiquated society here when it comes to people who use wheelchairs. No wonder I am having issues and people are staring at me. After checking out of the hotel, we took the highway to Firenze and avoiding their ZTL zone, found the AC Hotel Firenze where we were staying for 2 nights. We went out for dinner the “Italian way” late at night and had a good time however the restaurant, which I chose from reviews online, had just changed hands so while they knew “senza glutine” and how to prepare the food, they had no gluten free products. I still did well with a salad and chicken for dinner! Walking come we ran into a car which we knew what the GIANT “P” meant – the driver who took us into Rome explained it – it is the equivalent to an “N” driver in BC – however the sign is MUCH bigger!
