What a Drago!

Sad to leave Florence (I loved it even more this time, since it was 10 degrees cooler than the previous visit), we caught a taxi back to the airport to collect another rental car - another little Fiat Panda. With no fuss we had the car in no time, and hit the autostrada towards Chianti country and Siena. For our long-time fans, last time we did this exact drive, I was trying to help navigate the windy roads while reading the map, which is a recipe for disaster for someone that gets car-sick. This time I pre-empted fate and popped a travel sick pill - victory! I much preferred the drive this time - up and down the hills with stunning vistas, and past all the vineyards and olive groves. Ryan had his heart set on doing some wine-tasting at a place in Greve in Chianti called Castelli di Uzzano, but the address according to Google, Trip Advisor and their own website were all different and we could not find it. Alas we pushed on past Greve in Chianti, and came across a place called Montegliari  which looked to have a bit of action going on so we popped in for some wine tasting. Oddly, the couple who poured the wines were 2 young American college kids who looked barely over 21, who had just arrived in Chianti for an "internship". They were studying political science, or something or rather totally unrelated to wine, but anyway it was nice to have a bit of a chat in English about some stuff, and good on them - they've got the right idea of how to spend a summer! So we bought a couple of bottles (if you don't, it's 5 Euros for the tasting, so you're silly not to buy buy buy).

Same-cationing at Vescine

We then continued on, and since it was only 2 years since we had done this exact drive it began to feel familiar. And then suddenly we rounded the bend and saw the vineyard, Vescine, where we had stopped for lunch last time. So in the spirit of same-cationing, we pulled in again, this time sans nausea. It's such a beautiful little spot, and again the staff were very friendly. so we tried one white and 2 reds (probably the same as last time but different vintages, so of course we had to try!). And we stayed for lunch - I had a ravioli with "sage pesto" but basically it was that naughty but delicious butter and sage sauce. And Ryan had tagliatelle with porcini mushroom. Both sooo good!

Ravioli with "sage pesto" - YUM

After our delicious lunch back at Viscine we pushed on to Siena. We had booked a different hotel in Siena this time (if it had not literally been 5 times the price as last time we would have been back there in a heart beat) but it was still in a great location. Being the afternoon before Il Palio we knew it would be very crowded and difficult to park - our hotel was full, so was the nearest pay parking station, and so it turned out was every possible parking place within a couple of kilometres! We had managed to check in and drop our bags off at the hotel thankfully, and then after circling around the area and up and down side streets, Ryan did some creative parking in somewhere probably not designed to park a car. Knowing that the Italians are pretty relaxed with most rules, we took our chances, and said Ciao to our little Fiat Panda in that spot for a couple of days.

Il Campo on Il Palio Eve

We then immediately set forth into the heart of Siena - the vibe was already electric. Siena is definitely one of my favourite places in the world, and walking back into Il Campo (the town "square", around which the race is run) was a pure joy. The dirt track was laid down, as were the surrounding gates set up, all ready for the most important race (at least 1 of 2) that Siena hosts each year. It was all very exciting, and we knew a big parade and fanfare was about to kick off soon. We picked a spot high up on an entrance to Il Campo which had a decent view, but alas we couldn't stay there (I guess because if crowds start pushing on that kind of slope then it is only bad news). But we stood there for an hour watching everyone flow into Il Campo. The beauty of this event is, although it is very crowded, most of the crowd are locals and this is when each district within the area get to claim superiority by winning the race.

Crowds flowing into Il Campo the night before Il Palio

We didn't want to brave the Il Campo crowds this particular night, so we went and sought out a nice spot for dinner instead. We wandered around the now quiet streets, and passed a place which had a sign with promises of an outdoor terrace, so we walked in and were greeted with beautiful sunset views over Siena while sitting in a quiet garden. Simply stunning. I had a beautiful herb-crusted tuna steak which was something different and a lovely change! Once the sun had set we walked around the town a bit - not only because we were lost, but also because the parade in Il Campo had finished and all the locals were sitting down to their contrada dinners. Some roads/alleyways were closed and very long tables set up to fit about 50 people for a big dinner - we could see one of them and it looked like a lot of fun with much eating, drinking, cheering and frivolity. We headed back home though, with an early start planned the next morning.

Dinner venue the night before Il Palio

The next morning we set the alarm so that we could get down to Il Campo bright and early to catch the Final Trial, where they do a couple of laps with the horses that will actually race, so that they get used to the whole setup! It was a beautiful morning, and it was fairly quiet down at Il Campo - in front of the clock tower/catherdral there was a small crowd gathered to witness a religious ceremony being performed, blessing the horses and what-not. At 9am they started bringing the horses in, and we had a spot right on the railing so could see everything. It turns out that of the 17 contrade, only 10 race (as that is all that can fit in at the starting line). This was a slight shame as in Florence we had each already picked our teams - I picked the Little Owl (as I am small but wise) and Ryan picked the Goose (as he is as silly as one). It turned out that both of them weren't rostered on for this race, dang. It didn't matter, we each bought the team colours anyway!

Panorama of Il Campo the morning of Il Palio

We understood why the lineup was limited to 10 - once they get the first 9 lined up, it gets quite squishy and the 10th horse just does not want to have to squeeze in, so there's a lot of time spent with the 10th horse hanging back refusing to budge, and then all the horses start to crack the shits so then they let all the horses step back and do a few circles around and then try it all again. We had friends that went last year and apparently that happened 17 times, and another local said sometimes the race can take 1-2 hours just to start, as that 10th horse will not go in (although we think there are some jockey tactics at play here too). Since it was just the final trial, it only took a couple of rounds, and then it was on! Although hilarilously, it was the slowest horse race I have ever seen. Evidently being the day of the big race, the final trial is just spent leisurely trotting them around the course. That meant we could at least get some good shots of them!

Front seats at the final trial

After the trial, we went back to the hotel and it was still quite early so made the hotel breakfast! We then chilled in our room working out our plan of attack. Would we try and squeeze into Il Campo to watch try and watch the race? Should we go to a bar nearby and watch it live on TV but still hear the crowd? Or should we just soak up the atmosphere before and after and actually sneakily watch the World Cup back at the hotel? We had heard that you need to get into the centre of Il Campo several hours ahead of the start, and once you are in, you cannot get out and there are not toilets or food/drink stands or anything. Also I'm not a fan of crowds, and being a little owl, I normally cannot see much when I stand in them. However there was a part of me that really wanted to be there. You can buy seats around the outside in the temporary stands they set up - these are literally 250 Euros each. If you want a balcony seat (50cm of a crappy bench in a gelati shop that is) then that is 500 Euros each. And then all the rich people pay unfathomable amounts for the balconies in the hotels. This is why most people go in to the centre "Dogs Stand" for free.

Reprezenting Little Owl and Goose districts!

We headed back to Il Campo at midday to see what was happening - the people who wanted front row were already camped out in the sun in the Dogs Stand. I commend them for their commitment. There was  bar advertising that seats were still available - ooh could they be selling cheaply at the last minute? We enquired - no, 250 Euros per person. Are you kidding me?!? Those particular seats were right in the sun, and the last in Il Campo to get the shade too.

Contrada flag (the Forest)

So we stopped for some lunch and shared some pizza. We noticed more people coming out, and the atmosphere had a real buzz and was building. I think it was then we realised we just had to be there for it. So we went back to the hotel for a bit, and got changed into appropriate gear ie. no thongs. I even donned my Italy soccer jersey - I'm not sure if that was a faux pas since they were out of the World Cup, but hey I believe you support your team in the good times and bad. We headed down, used the nearest facilities at the last possible moment, and then entered the Dogs Stand at about 5pm. There were a lot of people, but it wasn't too bad, and luckily for me Il Campo is set on a massive slope, and so we headed up one of the high corners and found a great spot, where even little me could see a lot of the track, and it got the shade pretty quickly. The next 2.5 hours passed pretty quickly, as there was yet another parade with each contrada parading their flags - they do this routine where they throw them very high to each other, and everyone cheers. So there was about 2 hours of pomp and ceremony. It's amazing to think that this race happens twice a year - it will all happen again next month!

A few hours later this gelati bar view was worth 500 Euros per person

The crowd built, but where we were standing was great - not too squishy! Finally it came to 7:30 and it was time for the horses to come out - it was so exciting, but also we were surrounded by locals wearing different colours, and you could sense how important it was to them all. Each horse was announced, and when they started to line up, it was amazing that a crowd of that size managed to hush. The 10th horse (drawn out of a hat) was not keen to line up again, but after 3 failed rounds, they were suddenly off! And boy were they quick! They do 3 laps, and one lap must only be about 400m, but it's the corners and slope that come into play in Il Palio. Oh, and did I mention the jockeys are riding bare-back?! It's common, unfortunately, for riders to fall off, or the horses to fall themselves. It doesn't matter though - whatever horse crosses first - with jockey or not - is declared the winner.

In the Dogs' Stand at Il Palio

And so 3 quick laps later, with thankfully no falls, it was all over - and the Drago (dragon) contrada were the victors! The people from that contrada then suddenly run onto the track and hug the jockey and dance around in joy! Then quickly there's another parade of each contrada and their flags, but led by the winning jockey and Drago flags. It was spectacular - I'm so glad we braved the Dogs' Stand (or didn't pay 500 Euros each!).

Flag parade post Drago win

Everyone soon piled out of Il Campo, and we headed straight to the restaurant, Zest, which we went to last time we were here. Just to complete such an awesome experience with some more same-cationing. You can check out all my Siena photos here!