Salve da Siena!

(Hello from Siena!)

We were all really sad to leave Florence yesterday. Really sad. As in, I cried. As in, I made a wee video on our last night, to post to this blog, and then I decided I couldn’t post it because I sounded so sad! So you get this still shot from the video instead.

Honestly, one of the more challenging parts of this trip has been leaving places before we feel ready to go – even when we’re looking forward to the next place on our itinerary, it’s just hard to say goodbye. I have found that these transitions also tend to intensify my grief over my father’s death, too. Our departure from Florence came the day after the 3-month anniversary of losing my dad, which I think just made leaving that lovely city all the harder.

But, Siena was beckoning, so away we went.

Our apartment is right outside the old city wall, giving us a stunning view of the gorgeous historic city center. Siena is every bit as charming as I remember, but this time, as much as I’ve enjoyed walking around town visiting the various historical sites (especially the cathedral), my favorite thing is probably just sitting out on the terrace looking at the city itself, watching her change with the light.

Midday

At sunset

Dusk

Night

We were going to go out to dinner tonight, but we couldn’t tear ourselves away from this view, so we just stayed on the terrace and ate bread and cheese and chocolates. What a life!

…words are replaced under Siennese skies / By nothing so much as a nod and a sigh / And a wish to be always like this…. – “What If We Went to Italy,” Mary Chapin Carpenter