Blog #21 - Our Last Day in Toscana

So what do you do with one day left in Tuscany when you have already been to Florence (twice), Pisa, Lucca, San Gimignano, and Volterra and with a side trip back to Eastern Liguria to hike the trails of Cinque Terre?  You go to Siena of course to see its historic centre, which has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is also the site of the famous Palio di Siena, a traditional medieval horse race run around the Piazza del Campo twice each year, on 2 July and 16 August.




Sandy scoping out a panoramic shot from one of the walls of Montepulciano.


However, before we could get to Siena, there were two other stops we wanted to make on the way.  The first stop of the day was at Rapolano Terme.  Terme is Italian for spa, baths or hot springs.  Having missed the hot springs at Pré St-Didier Thermal Spa at Monte Bianco, we were excited to learn that there are a number of thermal spas in Tuscany.  These spas were actually marked on our road map of Italy with a special symbol, but our guide books had no information on them.  So we had to go on-line to do some research.

The hill town of Montepulciano seen across the valley - the second stop on out last day in Tuscany.

When we were in Florence, I went to an Internet Café to do a little research to find out which spa we should go to.  I found using a computer in this Internet Café was no simple matter, which made me somewhat suspicious.  First thing I had to do, was to hand over a piece of identification (I used my drivers licence), which the clerk then photocopied and entered all my personal information into a computer.  The clerk explained that it was the law in Italy, which I later found out to be true (if you can believe Wikipedia).  Then when I logged onto the computer I had been assigned, someone else's e-mail was up and running and I could read all their messages.  Needless to say, I didn't check my e-mail on this computer and only used it to research thermal spas in Tuscany.  The spa town that seemed to be best located and had a nice description was Rapolano:
http://www.welcometuscany.it/special_interest/thermal_spas/siena_Rapolano_Terme.htm

These stairs were off limits.  What's down there?

When we got to Rapolano, we stopped at the information centre and learned that there were two commercial spas - one in the town and the other a few kilometres outside of town with views of the Tuscan countryside.  So we chose to go for the spa with the view - the San Giovanni.  All their spa treatments were booked, so all we could do was go into the pools.  We had brought our bathing suits and our own towels, so we paid €13 each and went into the spa.  The spa had half a dozen pools of varying sizes from small to large, with the water cascading from its source through each of the pools.

Some of the pools at Terme San Giovanni Spa in Rapolano

Since they have a "No Cameras" policy all we can show you is a photo of the building we took when we left and the picture above of the pools that I downloaded from their web site.  Here is a description of the waters we bathed in:

"The mineral waters in the swimming pools at Terme San Giovanni Spa in Rapolano flow from the source at a temperature of 39° C. The natural elements that they contain are mainly composed of sulphur, providing their distinctive odour, and calcium bicarbonate. Combined with the high temperatures of the spa water, these two components provide healing properties that are particularly effective in treating skin problems, as well as the motor and respiratory systems.  In addition to the feeling of relaxation and comfort that bathing in these springs provides, it also has a cosmetic effect on the skin, improving its appearance and fighting against conditions such as psoriasis, dermatitis and eczema. As for the motor system, our hot spring water helps relieve muscle stiffness and enhance tissue elasticity.  Inhaling the natural vapours disinfects the airways, providing a marked improvement in respiration."  http://www.termesangiovanni.it/index.php?lng=en

The entrance to Terme San Giovanni Spa in Rapolano.

After spending two hours in the mineral pools of San Giaovanni Spa, we continued on our journey to the famous hill town of Montepulciano.  Our mountain guide Mario from the Monte Bianco expedition was the one who recommended that we go to Montepulciano, and he was right of course as we found the town very interesting.  On the drive there, I felt a burning sensation in my back and realized that I had used the mineral coated pool walls, which were quite rough, as a scratching post for my back and in doing so had ground calcium, sulfur and other minerals into my back - ouch!  We took the back roads to Montepulciano and it ended up taking quite a while to get there, but when we rounded a corner on a hill, we saw the town sitting on a hill across a wide valley.

Montepulciano as seen from across the valley.

When we got to Montepulciano we found a fairly large walled city, built on a narrow limestone ridge full of Renaissance buildings.  As we entered the gates of the city, we saw quaint shops including many wine shops selling the famous Nobile wine from the region.  We went into one of the shops and found that they had an extensive wine cellar that they allowed tourists to walk through.  They also had wine tasting of various years of the Nobile wine, which we tried out on our way out of town. We selected a 2003 Nobile to buy and bring back to Canada.

The entrance gate to Montepulciano.  Like the other hill towns, there was a lot of up-hill walking to get to the centre of the town, which was at the highest point on the hill.

Down in the wine cellar.

Chiesa (Italian for Church) di Sant'Agostino - one of the "small" churches in Montepulciano.  I counted eight churches and the major cathedral on the map of this town of about 5000 residents.

The rest of our stay in Montepulciano involved visits to the churches and cathedral, taking photos of the panoramic vistas and visiting the numerous shops.  We had a capuccino/beer and cakes at one of the shops and also tasted some wild boar salami.  I didn't care much for the salami when I first tasted it, so I didn't buy any.  However, by the time we got back to the car, I found I had a very pleasant after-taste of the salami lingering on my palate.  So I went back to the shop and bought a stick of the wild boar salami for snacking on.  It was a tasty treat on our drive to Rome the next day.

The shop where we bought the wild boar salami.

Translation "Door of Bacchus - Secret Passage".  Bacchus is the Roman god of wine and wine making.

The Piazza Grande of Montepulciano.

By the time we got out of Montepulciano, the sun was setting but we still wanted to see Siena.  Since it was directly on our way back to Barberino, we drove off the main highway and into the city.  Siena is not as big as some of the other cities we drove through (e.g. Pisa, Genova), but it is still large enough to get lost.  With a population of 54,000 it is about the size of North Bay.  We did manage to find the old city centre without too much trouble, parked the car and walked through the ancient gates to this amazing city.  It was bustling as we first entered the streets where only people were walking and made our way to the central squares and main cathedral.  Our only regret was that it was now dark and the cathedral was closed because it looked amazing. 

The Cathedral of Siena seen at night.  It would have been nice to see in day time and to see the interior.  I guess we will just have to go back and do just that.

I was also quite happy to finally see the Piazza del Campo where they hold the traditional medieval horse race called the Palio di Siena, or simply Il Palio (Italian for the Prize).  The following link provides some amazing pictures of the race:
http://www.google.ca/images?hl=en&expIds=17259,24815,26637,26992,27095,27103,27178&xhr=t&q=palio+di+siena&cp=14&wrapid=tljp128795426884500&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=W5_ETJjIFoKisQOlmJ3SCw&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=3&sqi=2&ved=0CDsQsAQwAg&biw=1090&bih=434

The Piazzo del Campo where they hold the famous Palio di Siena horse race.

Not the best self-portrait we took, but the background showing the Town Hall and Torre del Mangia is well centered in the photo.