When we have travelled to Italy previously, October was the perfect weather. Perhaps that was true of the coastal areas that we had toured. Essentially on this trip, we experienced a week of rain commencing with this particular morning.

Undaunted, D was willing to tackle the Italian Autostrata in spite of the rain. The beauty of Siena was evident even with rain splatters on my camera lens.

We wandered for a bit to get our bearings and then towards the piazza for a mid-morning cappuccino.

I sat my umbrella out to drip dry as we snuggled together under an awning.

I was unimpressed with the cheesy smile adhered to this beautiful landmark in the piazza.

 

So I circumvented the smile by taking close ups of the gorgeous building.

Even though we weren’t in the market for fresh produce, I couldn’t resist photographing the casual displays.

Since it was raining anyway, we decided to purchase tickets to visit the 13th century Siena Cathedral.

Here too, I was captured by the little details.

Even Wikipedia refer to the marble of the Cathedral of being black and white. Black and white are the symbolic colors of Siena, linked to black and white horses of the legendary city’s founders, Senius and Aschius.

We learned from the audio accompaniment while on the tour that the marble is actual white and green and upon close inspection we could see that this was correct.

The marble itself was beautiful but so too were the stained glass windows and the carved columns.

You cannot help but be awed by the magnitude of the architectural feat with ceilings that soared to a seemingly impossible height.

The domes too were absolutely exquisite. One could easily imagine souls soaring heavenward.

I was particularly enamoured with the black angels which adorned the altar.

Being a former art history student, I recognized the work of Bernini, reminding me of the Ecstasy of St. Theresa that I had pleasure of seeing in the Vatican years before.

Gazing upon Michelangelo’s amazing sculptures were memorable too.

Once again, the details were what I was continually drawn to.

The side chapels were not to be missed either. The cathedral was a glorious way to cope with a rainy Tuscan morning.

Kath’s quote: “I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free“. -Michelangelo

Love never fails.

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