Siena

On Sunday morning we drove through the Tuscan countryside to attend church in Siena.

We were so excited when we found a small brass plaque that read Chiesa Di Gesu Cristo dei Santi Degli Ultmi Giorni. Inside a tiny congregation of about 20 church members sat on folding chairs, singing hymns with tunes we recognized. We couldn't understand a word that was said, but we were all happy to be in a place that felt familiar.

Afterward we wandered through the walls of Siena and into Il Campo, the main square. We picked up a lunch of sausage and cheese and a little cake made with an original medieval recipe.

We chose the perfect day for a trip to this hill top village because there happened to be a chocolate festival going on! Booth after booth was full of chocolate dipped fruit, liquid chocolate to drink, white chocolate bark and molded chocolates. Our favorite stand had an entire table dedicated to very realistic looking chocolate tools. I gave the kids two euros each to pick out a treat.

We made our way to Siena's Duomo, which turned out to be our favorite church of the trip so far. Every aspect of this cathedral is gorgeous. I loved the busts of the popes lining the upper walls, the Renaissance frescos and the stained glass, which is the oldest in Italy. The marble floors were magnificent. The kids found it amazing that they took over 200 years to complete, especially in contrast to Ghiberti's 50 years to create the Baptistry doors in Florence and Michelangelo's four years spent painting the Sistine Chapel.

On our way back, we wandered through steep alleys and narrow streets. I know one thing that I will miss upon leaving this area of Europe is the smell of laundry detergent lingering in the small passage ways. I love that Europeans hang their clothes out to dry! I am not sure that it would work with a family of eight, but I might just put up a clothes line when we return to the states.

Our route from Siena to Greve took us past picturesque scenes of Italian villas, vineyards, olive gardens and Tuscany's signature winding roads.

When we returned to Greve, we found all of the restaurants closed for the evening, so we pulled out the pasta that we had bought in Rome.

I had picked up spices that I was told to mix with olive oil for a topping. We all agreed that it was time for a home cooked meal and this was the perfect dinner after a Sunday in Siena.