Our day started with the usual pre ride brief from our guides, Paulo and Luca. Everyone who rode today (some took the day off to explore Siena) was excited at the prospect of a day in the sun and what promised to be an exiting ride.
Paulo and Luka
After our brief we followed Luka who was riding with us (Paulo drove the van today) out of the city. Now you should understand that out of the city means almost 3 kilometers through the narrow streets,
with cobbled pavement and lots of people walking. So, it was an exciting start to the ride for the day.
After we made it out of the city, the traffic dislsipated, the fog lifted and we were climbing hills
again on our way to our mid day stop at Castellini.
On the way to Castellini-what a view we had!
Paulo met us there with the van and a nice selection of fruit and snacks and we went shopping (remember, that means bike shops) and found a place that had a really nice selection of riding jerseys. We may have made some purchases.😉
Now one of the things that has captured our interest on this trip is that any public toilet has a fee to use it. In Castellini, we found the best one yet. It was coin operated and cost 1/2 Euro. The best part though was that between users, the door closed and it had a system that sprayed down the inside. So when you went in EVERYTHING was clean.
After we left Castellini the real fun started. Luca led us on a 40 kilometer combination of challenging climbs each one complimented by a screaming downhill, full of really tight turns and switchbacks. Can you say FUN!!!!
At one point we stopped in front of what we assume was an elementary school. A bunch of the kids came to the fence and were cheering and waving at us.
We got back to the hotel around 3, cleaned up and headed out for something to eat. Both of us were sure we couldn't stand another late, long and lazy 3 course meal just before bed so we went to The Piazza del Compo. Now this plaza built in the 12th century was once the central market place of Siena. Today it is lined with restraunts and shops. It is probably best known as the site of The Palio de Siena a twice a year horse race between the Tuscan regions that is called the most dangerous horse
race in the world. The plaza is covered in dirt just for the race each time.
Piazza del Compo
As we were eating our dinner a huge rain and hail storm erupted and the awning gave way completely swamping the table next to us including the people that were eating there and all of their food
After dinner it is time to go back to the hotel, relax and get a good nights sleep as tomorrow is supposed to be the most challenging ride of the week.
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