After our sprint in Italy with Rome and Naples, I was looking forward to a bit more time to relax in central Italy in the region of Tuscany. Our plan was to leave Naples by train early, stop by Chiusi to explore some old Etruscan (the civilization that the region is named for, flourished in history between the Greeks and Romans) tunnels, and arrive in Siena in the afternoon for a one night stay. The next day we'd head to Volterra, where we'd be staying for four nights, and take a day trip to San Gimignano (just left of Poggibonsi on the map) and maybe Pisa while we were there.However. . . the plans turned out to be a bit more spontaneous due to many unexpected circumstances, and especially due to the lack of reliable public transportation in Tuscany.
As usual, things turned out fine and most of the time we had a good time. In Chiusi we couldn't drop our luggage off, so we never even made it to the town (which required a city bus ride to the top) and just headed on to Siena. Siena is one of the most recommended smaller towns in Tuscany, but we didn't have much time there to enjoy it because of our difficult of arriving in Volterra on a Sunday-- after a very un-buffet style breakfast at our only expensive B&B. We left Siena early, hoping to find a way to Volterra via San Gimignano because they were only 30km apart (and buses only left for SG and Florence from Siena). Upon arriving in San Gimignano (known for its 72 stone towers, of which only 14 are still standing) we discovered a festival was underway, which could have been quite nice if we hadn't had all our luggage with us. My plan was to find the tourist office, which was supposed to let us drop our bags off, then search out a way to Volterra or a room in SG instead. However, the festival was occurring in the blocked off plaza where the tourist info office was situated; to get in we'd have to pay eight euros. Not willing to pay money unnecessarily, Marshall went searching the town for a pay phone and other info offices, while I watched luggage and watched costumed locals parading into the other plaza. . .
Obviously there are a lot more unpleasant details to that particular Sunday, but following almost nine hours of painfully waiting 'in flux' we did get a room in SG. After giving up on the bus to Volterra when the bus driver said there wasn't one, we looked for rooms, and exhausted the recommended places list save one. We found our last hope, but it too was closed. I'm sure we looked pretty defeated at this point, but one of the locals participating in the festivities came over to help us out. When he found out I could (more or less) speak Italian he told me that the owner also owned the adjoining restaurant and would be back at 6pm, so we should try back then. And he told me the equivalent in Italian of 'don't worry, be happy.' It was a nice high in the middle of a long day of lows. We saw him later in the final parade of the festival.
It turned out they took down the barricades later on and we were able to watch a few events for free. First, the final parade of the four competing neighborhoods (blue, red, green, yellow flags 
decorated the city indicating the neighborhoods) entered the plaza (pictured later that evening), with the winners, the 'contrada' (neighborhood) with the blue flag with the eagle, entering last. Their champion (the guy on the horse in the picture) had won the golden sword and came prancing in on his horse waving his prize in the air, with all the rest of his contrada comrades celebrating with shouts and throwing bundles of wheat (or something?) in the air. But the best part was when tight-wearing, short-skirted men came out twirling flags. . .aka, the flag throwers from Siena. Being an Under the Tuscan Sun fan, I love finding relationships to the movie, like the limoncello tasting in Sorrento, and so this event had even 
more meaning for me. It started out with just four throwers and four drummers. The passes became more and more intricate, and the music quicker, as the show progressed. The men would do some intricate choreography exchanging flags and 'twirling' them, but the greatest part was when they'd launch them like spears into the air, either to catch their own or to pass it to another. It was simply exhilarating to watch (though I very stupidly didn't have my camera at this point and was too enthralled to leave. . .) Later, a larger group of throwers came out to perform, and it was only toward the end of this group, when 15 or more flags were getting tossed into the air simultaneously, that two flags collided in the air and the men missed them. The rest of the performance seemed flawless.
decorated the city indicating the neighborhoods) entered the plaza (pictured later that evening), with the winners, the 'contrada' (neighborhood) with the blue flag with the eagle, entering last. Their champion (the guy on the horse in the picture) had won the golden sword and came prancing in on his horse waving his prize in the air, with all the rest of his contrada comrades celebrating with shouts and throwing bundles of wheat (or something?) in the air. But the best part was when tight-wearing, short-skirted men came out twirling flags. . .aka, the flag throwers from Siena. Being an Under the Tuscan Sun fan, I love finding relationships to the movie, like the limoncello tasting in Sorrento, and so this event had even 
more meaning for me. It started out with just four throwers and four drummers. The passes became more and more intricate, and the music quicker, as the show progressed. The men would do some intricate choreography exchanging flags and 'twirling' them, but the greatest part was when they'd launch them like spears into the air, either to catch their own or to pass it to another. It was simply exhilarating to watch (though I very stupidly didn't have my camera at this point and was too enthralled to leave. . .) Later, a larger group of throwers came out to perform, and it was only toward the end of this group, when 15 or more flags were getting tossed into the air simultaneously, that two flags collided in the air and the men missed them. The rest of the performance seemed flawless.
After the flag throwing performance a group of musicians played a song before we decided to go find some food, which ended up being mediocre pizza to go (from an amusing pizzeria), with which we watched a spectacular sunset over tuscan hills. Then we each got a gelato to end the evening, wandering around the nearly empty city before heading back to the hotel.
The next morning we left early to get to Volterra (finally!!) which was 2hrs away with the tuscan distance-time inequivalency (30km = 2hrs??). Once again the streets were devoid of tourists, just locals preparing for the day. What was really amazing was the way the entire ambiance of the city changed with early morning and evening compared to the day. And before our bus left, I also got to be the third person into the supermarket that morning. I was just behind two men with their shopping carts ready in front of the sliding doors a few minutes before opening time. 
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