I Totally Got Lost in Siena

Siena, the Gothic art rival of medieval Florence, the city that everyone in the office of travel expert Rick Steves rants and raves about how wonderful it is. The beautiful and magical city at sunset. Well, they must mean that other Siena, because the one I am in is a maze of sloping streets (so steep it is a miracle I haven't fallen down any yet) and impossible to find sights. I came in yesterday afternoon, and after illegally riding the bus for a good while, I finally got a driver who pointed out the correct stop for my hostel. I get there to find the best room I have stayed in yet, plus the opportunity to do laundry later in the evening. Anxious to see one attraction before everything closed, I asked the unfriendly, marginally helpful guy at the desk, and managed to get to the Duomo in the city center. It was amazingly busy with art and decoration. It was not my favorite cathedral, but still pretty impressive and awe-inspiring.

As I left, it was starting to rain, and remembering my last experience in that kind of weather, I immediately set off for the bus stop. Keep in mind, I am still riding illegally, because the ticket the hostel gave me expired after an hour, and there was nothing open on a Sunday for getting a new one. So thinking logically, I go to the stop across from the one where I got off, thinking it would be the same bus lines, just the opposite direction. Good in theory. Number 10 did not stop there. So I headed off down the street, thinking that there were tons of stops, and I would eventually come to one that had bus 10. Again, good in theory, severely wrong in practice. So I got lost in Siena, trying to figure out how to get back to my hostel. But thanks to some friendly, non-English speaking locals, and a wonderful driver on bus 3, who took me back to where I had started to catch bus 10 (surprise, surprise), I made it back to the hostel to do some laundry and to take an amazing shower.

This morning, I was re-energized and ready to tackle the steep streets of Siena. After finding the main square, I set off to go to the art museum. And wouldn't you know it, I got lost again, and was tired enough with my heavy backpack that I just decided that Siena would be my city of doing nothing and relaxation before I get on a night train to Paris later today. As much as I would have liked to have seen so many of the artists that I studied in Western Art first-hand, I am sorry to report that sore knees, confusing streets, a heavy backpack, and unreliable maps and directions won out.

Sam told me not to have too many crazy adventures without her. I am sorry to report that the crazy adventures have only just begun.