Welcome to our day of touring around Siena! First off, an observation regarding this hotel. Most Marriott Hotels of this type have a “pantry” where you can get food – from snacks, to pop, to ice cream to a selection of toiletries. What they offer in North America is quite standard. This is the first Marriott where I have seen the major selection on display for purchase is wine!
So today, we are off to San Girmiano and then to Pisa, if we have time. I originally thought the car needed to be returned earlier than when it actually did so squeezing in Pisa the next day was going to be a challenge. Then I figured out we did not need to rush after all – the car was not due back until the day we left Firenze (Florence). So we then relaxed and off we went headed to the UNISCO site of San Girmiano! San Girmiano is a small walled village with excellent views of the surrounding areas of Tuscany. It is between Siena and Firenze on a local road. Like Montepulciano, it is an inhabited city. There are many towers in this city – too many to take pictures of! Its specialities are saffron and a type of white wine. They also have very beautiful leather bags… as I now own one!
Now, we got back into our little (racing) car and we were off to see how much the Leaning Tower really leans in Pisa! Luckily my directions on my phone were excellent this time (Side bar – I had purchased a cheap unlocked phone before leaving and put a European plan data/calling plan on it once I got to Spain. It has been a lifesaver when it has come to directions and keeping us out of trouble on all the backroads of Italy!) and we arrived right next to the old town wall in Pisa and drove right into an accessible parking spot on the street! The other nice feature of accessible parking spots (which are hard to find not occupied) is you do not have to pay to park in them – well you will get a ticket if you do not have the right permit so I guess that is a type of payment! So we quickly walked past all the vendors and through through the wall and there they were – the Baptistry, Church and Leaning Tower of Pisa all lined up in a row! Quite a sight! However I see what people mean when they say that the Leaning Tower of Pisa is quite small compared to the other buildings. We were able to into the church – you do have to pay for admission which is strange for a church however due to my walker they let us in free and then we walked over to the Leaning Tower and took some pictures. We also stopped for ice cream and watched all the various people contorting in different positions “holding up” the tower! It was really fun to see what imaginations some people have with their cameras and their friends! It was just a quick visit to Pisa – we checked out the drove of vendors set up as we exited the gates and I was able to pick up some pashmina’s made in Italy which was excellent! Then we were back on our way to Siena for the evening…
