Siena is also black and white

The duomo in Siena is majestic. From the exterior it is striking black and white and seems to soar above the rest of the city.


Where we were standing when I took this picture was supposed to be the nave. The NAVE! The cathedral is huge, and yet they wanted to make it larger. Arguing architects, not enough money, lack of supplies, and the plague got in the way. Ingenious Siennese have built homes in the upright parts of the ruins and you can park on the stones that mark where the support columns would have been.


As you approach, the black and white don't seem so startling, because the baroque statuary begins to take over.







If the cathedral were an article, the exterior would be the precise. I know, that's what good architecture should do, lead the participant inside without any jarring differences.

Over-sized, black & white, stories of God's people...and the guilt. I mean gilt!

Siena, as in the crayola crayon color

Thanks to Sally Big Woods for nudging me into posting these photos.

We spent Thanksgiving in Tuscany, and one day in Siena. Folks, go to Siena. It has great churches and great church art. It's calming and beautiful and, well, Burnt Siena colored. It has is a gyro stand!

The Basilica di San Domenico is part of the convent where Catherine of Siena lived, prayed, and was ecstatic. San Domenico sits at the edge of town, near a beautiful park through which we walked from the bus parking lot. The exterior of the building is brick, of the baked-orange color that is so prevalent in the area. Most roads seem to lead away from the basilica and the convent beyond.

"Force protection" called for our group to break into smaller groups on the walk from the bus lot to the town proper, and we gathered (why? what happened to force protection?!) at the bottom of the steps leading up to the church. If we hadn't had to stop, my wandering eye wouldn't have been stopped by the basilica doors.



I can't find any information about the doors online. I do remember the tour guide saying that the doors are new, perhaps put in during the post-WW II renovations?

Of course, there is lots online about the interior of the church.
Laid out in an Egyptian cross, the interior is spacious and light. Frescoes dominate the altar area. We were more interested in the reliquaries! I confess to a certain morbid fascination with sainted body parts. To the kids, they add interest to what would be "just another church." San Domenico holds reliquares of Catherine's head and thumb. The rest of her sainted body lies in Rome. Her mother pleaded with the Dominican order just to have a few pieces remain in Siena!

While Catherine is the patron saint of Europe, and was named for the town in which she lived, San Domenico is not what the town is known for. Rather, it is the outrageous Romanesque-Gothic Duomo that captivates most tourists' attention.

Hurry Up & Wait

This is a sensation that will become very familiar to us in the next few weeks. As this is also the Sicilian attitude towards driving and lines, it will most likely stay with us for the next few years!

We flew out of Nofolk Navy Base on Sunday, June 24th. Our flight stopped in Shannon, Ireland at 2 in the morning and Rota, Spain a few hours later. We met another Sigonella-bound family with 2 children (Hi, Bigby's!!), with whom we have become good friends. We also flew with an old friend of ours from New Jersey, Dan Grippo, who was headed further afield than us!

We deplaned in the early afternoon on Monday, in the midst of scirocco winds. It felt like being inside a hair dryer!

For some reason, perhaps the heat, jet lag seems to hit you like a ton of bricks here. We were wide awake most of Monday, couldn't sleep at all that night, and didn't quite wake up until noon. This lag didn't let up for weeks - a warning to any visitors!

Commence the Hotels

Once our worldly possessions had been boxed, shipped (both fast and slow) and stored away, we started what would become 3 weeks of hotel living. Even Beatrice and Wylie got tired of hotel life after awhile. (How does Lindsay Lohan do it?) I think our first hotel was the best, with hot breakfasts and a great pool, and close to Mimi and all the stuff we still had to do in Portsmouth.

A perk of staying in Norfolk, prior to our departure for Sicily, was the chance to have dinner with the Garners. Geoff had just begun his tour in Iraq, but Mary, Maddie and Adele met us one evening. Beatrice even got to sleepover before we left!

A Moment of Quiet, please

Beatrice is more distraught at the thought of losing our white car than anything else. The white Subaru is hers, she has been driving around in its backseat since we bought it when she was 4 months old. Never mind the shiny minivan of a few years ago or the nice leather seats of the new Subaru. Sitting on the goldfish-encrusted backseat, with its uneven speakers and window that only the driver can operate...nirvana!

Of course, we know it will be in good hands in Lincoln, and that we can see it and drive it every time we come home.

But how will anything we drive after this compare?!

End-of-the-school-year blitz!

So much to do, so little time! In addition to the usual end-of-school year squashed calendar, we added not one but 3 pack outs. Beatrice celebrated the start of double-digits with a literary-inspired party (below left). Wylie and I attended the annual Mother-Son Gulls game (below right). Beatrice and Wylie also sang in NYC at the St Bart's Children's Chorister Festival.

Arrivederci, Rhode Island!

As a Navy family, living anywhere for three years seems like a lifetime. We made so many friends, it seemed as though we'd been living there far longer. Of course, we were also lucky to live so close to family for those three years, and we were able to say "see you soon" to Mimi, JG & PopPop, and Auntie Boo and Anand.

We were extremely lucky to celebrate Mimi's 60th birthday with her. The photos above are from her party!