Siena - Duomo Baptistery, Il Campo, Dinner and Sweets

When we finished walking around the Duomo we went outside and walked around to the back. That is where the entrance was to the Baptistery. The church was not built on flat ground so the Baptistery actually supports the overhanging edge. Its a dark and quiet room that has a lot of art. 

Piazza del Campo (Il Campo) is the heart of Siena. Its a huge piazza where people stretch out like they are at the beach. It is regarded as one of Europe's greatest medieval squares. This is also where the famous Palio horse races are held during the summer. Normally there would be street performers, music, etc here but we did not see any which was surprising because it was Easter Monday which is a big holiday in Italy. 

This is Siena's city hall building in the square

Il Campo 

Dinner on the piazza

It started to rain right after we finished eating so we went back to our hotel which was luckily just off the piazza. When it was finished we just walked around and enjoyed Siena. In all the shops they sell panforte - it is a Sienese speciality and the recipe dates back to medieval times. I had to buy a tiny one to see what it tasted like. It honestly was just like a fruit cake and very sweet! 

Panforte

They had all different flavors of Panforte - chocolate, powdered, almond, etc

They also sold a cookie everywhere called ricciarelli. This is a white macaroon - and almond cookie. We all loved this cookie except for L. 

Ricciarelli Cookies

When it got dark we went back to the room. I put all the children to bed and Joe went out for a night stroll by himself (and also smoked a cigar in Il Campo). He then walked around and took some cool pictures of the city at night.