Gordy’s Tour of Italy: Breathtaking Art Adorns Siena Cathedral In Italy

After our visit to Assisi, we boarded a bus and headed to Siena in the Tuscany region. It was about an hour's drive to the town that features (as many European cities do) a fabulous town square. In fact, more than one. Here we saw the Siena Cathedral of Santa Maria (Duomo Di Siena).

It's still hard to get my head around the idea this area was vibrant with activity long before our country was even on the map. This majestic cathedral was consecrated in 1215 after groundbreaking in 1196 and was completed in 1348. You can see the white and black marble that adorns the outside and inside of the structure. Our guide noted the markings were symbolic of the colors of Siena and showed the cathedral was not built by the church, but by the city. Also inside is a beautiful marble mosaic floor.

Adjoining the cathedral is the Piccolomini Library, with frescoes galore adorning it. Below is the roof of the library.

En route to our next destination, we stopped for a bit of wine tasting at Castello Vicchiomaggio. This was my first wine tasting experience. They were all delicious, and the last red we tasted was 28 percent alcohol. Some of those making the trip did buy some to bring back home. I was thinking after we left how that red would probably go with a grilled rib eye or some smoked salmon.

More beauty was ahead of us on this trip and a bit of sadness, too.