Gerard M. Foley

After leaving Costa Fortuna at Savona, we rented a car, and my son Duncan drove us to Siena. The autostrada from Savona to Viaregio is mostly tunnels, so to see the Ligurian coast, use other roads. Siena, a walled hilltop city, is about 60 miles northwest of Rome, and a few miles south of Florence.

What appears below to be a picture of the front of Il Duomo is in fact a picture of a picture of the front of the cathedral. The front of the building is under repair, and a huge photograph has been hung before it. The doors portray scenes from the Bible in low relief.

The Piccolomini library, part of the cathedral, is lined with paintings of incidents from the life of a Pope who had been archbishop of Siena.

Another major site in Sienna is the Piazza del Campo, where the Palio di Siena, a bareback horse race is held twice a year.