Enchanting Siena and its fascinating Palio Horse Race

I’m getting worse as a traveler.  Before, I used to research first prior to visiting a place.  But during my last couple of trips, I couldn’t find time to research so I only relied on tour operator brochures and whatever information the guide gives during the tour itself.  The downside is you’re not able to plan well, but the upside is when you don’t have any expectations, sometimes a place could be a good surprise.

Siena is one place that I didn’t expect would deeply fascinate me.  As we entered the walled city, the tour guide pointed to a coat of arms on the wall.  It was that of an animal – I couldn’t remember what animal it was but the one in the photo below is that of a caterpillar.   There are several others – total of 17 (but in the medieval times, it was a total of 59!).   Some are fierce animals like dragon, ram, panther, but most were not even considered tough like the caterpillar, snail, porcupine and owl.  

 
Apparently, during the medieval times, districts were set up (called contrada) to supply troops to the military to defend Siena’s independence from Florence.   Each district had its symbol.  Up until today, though there are no more military functions, the 17 remaining districts have been able to preserve their localized patriotism and still have rivalries among the other districts.

The rivalries are particularly heightened during the Palio Horse Race held every July 2 (in honor of The Visitation) and Aug 16 (in honor of the Assumption which is technically on Aug 15 but since it was already marked for another festivity, the Sienese  settled on Aug 16 instead).    

If you watched James Bond's Quantum of Solace, the movie's early scenes were during Siena's Palio Horse Race but according to our tour guide, Daniel Craig was just digitally inserted in the scenes. :)

The Palio Horse Race’s early antecedents in the medieval times were jousting and bullfights. It was only in 1656 when Siena had its first Palio Horse Race. 

Before I talk more about the Palio Horse Race, below is the photo where they hold the horse race – at the Piazza del Campo – the same place where jousting and bullfights were once held during the medieval times.  

The piazza is shell-shaped, concave. I was overwhelmed by its sight that I actually forgot to use the panoramic feature of my point and shoot. Tsk..tsk…  Haha…

Here's a photo I got online when the place is transformed during a Palio Horse Race. Wow.

Source

During the Palio Horse Race, contradas vie for the trophy which is a painted banner called Palio, bearing an image of the Blessed Virgin Mary.  For every race, a new Palio is commissioned by well-known artists.  Here's one of the past Palios I got online.

Source

According to the tour guide, to us, it may seem that it’s just a piece of cloth but to the Sienese, the Palio is highly coveted and the riders fight with all their might.  They don’t care if someone gets hurt along the way as long as they win the race. 

Every year, about 35,000 watch the race, she says.  95% are allocated for the Sienese and 5% for outsiders.  And it’s not cheap to watch if you were an outsider.  The cheapest that you can get is 200 euros (Php12,000) for a bleacher seat and it can go as high as 10,000 euros (Php600,000) for a balcony view. Whoa…

Spotted these people up a balcony.  So these are the prime seats during the Palio Horse race.  But I could think of a lot of other ways to spend 10,000 euros and it’s definitely not on a 90-sec horse race!  Haha.. Yep, though the festivities last for days and weeks, the actual horse race, our tour guide said, only lasts for 90 seconds!  



 Other points of interest we visited in Siena include churches.  Here's the beautiful Siena Cathedral or Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta (Our Lady of Assumption).

 

Its architecture is classified as Romanesque-Gothic. Check out the very intricate details -

 

Here's inside the cathedral.   Everything is just beautiful - from the floor, walls to pillars and the ceiling.

 

Our tour guide said the various works inside the Cathedral are by famous artists like Donatello, Nicola Pisano, Michelangelo and Pinturicchio. But I couldn't remember which art work is from which artist. Sorry! 

We also visited the Piccolomini Library - a  library dedicated to Pope Pius II.  Check out the extraordinary frescoes on the walls - the scenes depict the life of Pope Pius II.

 

Check out also the beautiful ceiling of the Piccolomini Library.  

It's one of the most intricate I have ever seen. Wow.

Some random shots around Siena - 

I remember the building below was a bank (maybe their central bank) and if I remember correctly, the heads that you see used to be the past bank governors. 

I tremendously enjoyed exploring Siena.  Enchanting place. The Palio Horse Race and the contradas also fascinated me. But since I cannot afford seats to the horse race, being able to watch the horse race online is as good! Haha....

On our way to Pisa, our tour operator played a documentary on the Palio Horse Race and I could really feel the energy and passion of the Sienese people.  See, just watching a Palio Horse Race video already gives me the adrenaline rush. Haha... 

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This is part of a Tuscany Daytour package which we booked via Italia Tours.  The escorted tour costs USD113/pax which includes transportation and lunch.  The tour departs at the Sta Maria Novella station in Florence daily at 630am.  Itinerary covers Chianti, the walled cities of San Gimignano and Siena, and Pisa.