TRAVEL AND LIFESTYLE DIARIES

I have said in my previous travel entries that I prefer smaller cities and charming villages over large chaotic sprawls of civilization. The good points with Florence are, a. it is a city with a large Centrum that is packed together, and b. the Centrum can easily be explored on foot. But honestly, I had enough of the hectic activity around me and wanted something countrified - sluggish and bucolical (I think I am really getting old!). Siena was what I was thinking... The scenic train ride from Florence to Siena. In this short movie clip you can sight a castle snuggled above a hill with the village below it. The medieval city of Siena is huddled up on a hill. Visiting Siena will truly bring you back in time! So on Saturday evening, I sat down propped up on my hotel bed reading the travel guide my Dutch-in-laws lent me about Siena. Siena is one of the important cities of Tuscany, located right in the middle of the region. It is a city couched beautifully on top of a hill -- but do not be...

I would encourage people not to miss the noteworthy Palazzo Pitti, now a museum, and in particular the amazing Giardino di Boboli [Boboli Gardens], spanning approximately a vast 45 hectares of hilly land. Beautiful is the word I can describe this stately property. The Palazzo Pitti at my back from the Boboli Gardens. Right behind me is the ampitheater, the primary axis of this huge estate where open-air theatrical performances were once held for the Medicis. In the 2nd foto, you can sight the city of Florence at the back of Palazzo Pitti. Neptune (fountain), the discus thrower in the middle of the pool at Boboli. Next foto is a part of Palazzo Pitti (this is the wing where the Costume Gallery is) with the panoramic view of Florence just right behind it. This medieval palace with lavishly landscaped gardens and Renaissance antiquities is the home of the once powerful Medici family, rulers of the Tuscan region during the dark middle ages. Eleonora di Toledo, wife of Cosimo I de Medici, b...