| Dear Diary, A whole new day of activities to do and wonderful places waiting me to go to. "Yawn!" Still so sleepy! When I woke up, my mom was already up packing as we were moving to another hotel in Florence! Hmm.... the name Florence sounds familiar... lol! Well anyways, I headed down for a scrumptious breakfast, then joined the rest of the tour and headed out to the coach waiting. But before I go any further, I think I almost broke my fingers when I slammed them against a door, not purposely, but accidentally . They hurt so bad, that I think I bruised them at the knuckles.... :S Anyways, a long, boring drive down to Siena followed. The good thing was that we got to travel in an air-conditioned coach... ahhh... feel the breeze! Uh Oh, I just realized, BYE BYE ROME, "sniff, wiping eyes"... Oh how I hate GOODBYES! When reached destination: Siena, we had a city tour, which included a Local Guide to show us around. Our guide led us along a series of roads sloping upwards. Both sides of the narrow roads were packed with shops. Once in awhile, a car would come along, and the visitors and locals of Siena would have to move to the wall to prevent being run over. Before we reached the Square filled with shops and restaurants, we stopped by 2 Cathedrals located in one of the many Squares in Siena. Both Basilicas, needless to say, were majestic works of arts. Inside, like all other Cathedrals in Italy were filled with pictures, sculptures, and beautiful altars, etc. |
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| Cathedral... Look at all the careful architectures, and paintings.... Ain't that neat? For a larger picture, please click on the picture above! |
| The picture on the right is a picture of one of the 2 Cathedrals I visited in Siena. Look carefully at the careful architecture, and the paintings done on the exposed walls of the Basilica. This was one of the few Cathedrals that really caught my eye and captured my attention. If you want to observe a larger picture of the cathedral, just click on the picture! |
| After visiting the 2 Cathedrals, the Local Guide brought us to another Square, where there are lots of restaurants and souvenir shops! There my family and I ate lunch. The food was valued at a fair price, however, not the pops. The can was smaller than the normal cans we see back in Canada, and they cost 3.50 Euro EACH!!!! That's a LOT for a can of pop!!!! Ahh.... the sun is shining down on me so feriously... and 3 hours in this Square, it was pure torture! My family and I didn't dare wander through the narrow roads in fear of getting lost. But one thing we found out later, when we were at other parts of Italy was that, the merchandises here were cheaper! Moreover, when we were in Siena walking up and down the Square, taking pictures, in South Korea and Japan, Italy was playing against South Korea. That game led to Italy's downfall to my dismay. Many Italians along with the fans and supporters of the Italian team shared my moment of sorrow. Some Italians had flags ready to celebrate the winning, but were turned down. Later that night, when I saw the replay, I noticed how unfairly the referees were and flared up with anger. It wasn't fair! |
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| Part of a Picture of the Square (supposedly a circle, with lots of outdoor stands, and a clear opening in the middle! |
| Anyways, 2 and a half hours was up, just half an hour more to go! When we got to the place where the tour was supposed to be meeting in half an hour, basically the whole group was there. Not very surprising huh? Everyone no doubt was tired, and hot; all we wanted to do was to get back on the Air-Conditioned bus and enjoy the cool breeze! Due to the weather, not many people bought anything. My family and I got a Pinochio puppet, a cute puppy pencil holder, and a few other things. I didn't get the porcelin doll, which I deeply regret later and as I am writing this. Well anyways, on our walk back down to the waiting coach, we stopped by this bridge and took a few pictures of the city below. There were not only housings, but churches, and ruins too! However, since it is not of much significant, I won't put up the picture; however, if you are interested to see it, e-mail me! If you don't know or forgot my e-mail address, please sign my guestbook, and notify me through there please! Finally, I was sitting in the bus enjoying the cool breeze of the air-conditioning! Yay, I am going to Florence at last; to the place I am named after! When we arrived, I received a BAD news; what a way to start my visit in Florence!!!! Most of the tour was to live in Palazza Ricasoli, while my family and I and a few others were to live in Hotel Meridiana! What's the deal? I was confused and mad at the same time... but my feelings toward this altered a bit the next day when I talked to some people who lived in Palazza Ricasoli! The hotel I spent the night in was a 3-star hotel. First impression gotten from looking at the appealing lobby was: not too bad! But when I got into my room, and observed its size, I was stunned. I was even more shocked when I saw the bathroom, especially the shower space. Sliding the door to the shower open was the last thing I wanted to do, but I did anyways, and my prediction was right! The space in the shower is so small that when you turn, you bump into things!!!! At least the fine food in Alfredo, the restaurant we ate in, cheered me up a bit! Anyways, that's all for today! I didn't even know how I lived through that small cramped room that night! Good Night! Sleep Tight. Don't let the bed-bugs bite! (Don't laugh) luv, Florence |
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| I can't wait to see the sights and wonders of Florence!!!! Just can't wait! I mean, you would be excited too, if you are named after it! - Florence |
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