Hello everyone, happy Wednesday. This week is going by fast, thank goodness. It is my busiest week of classes -- 7+ hours a day.

Thankfully, our afternoon contemporary and art history classes consist mostly of walking tours. This week we got a tour of the Duomo as well as some of the older part of town -- Terzo di Citta' (the city is divided into thirds, based on the 3 hills on which it was built). I appreciated having my teacher there to give insight into the artwork because most of it goes right over my head. Not to mention, my knowledge of Christianity is close to nada. Even though Siena is a tiny town, everything and everywhere has historical significance -- and the Sienese people are passionate about preserving it.

We also had a private tour of the central meeting place for the Pantera Contrada. This was truly a privilege, as you cannot get in without knowing someone (the Sienese are also very passionate about their Contrade and the pride that comes with belonging to one...sono pazzi). This tour included authentic costumes from the Palio, seeing the horse stall, jockey uniforms, etc. The most amazing were the banners on display from every year the Pantera contrada had won. Each is handmade, painted on silk cloth.

It is hard to appreciate the detail that was put into each and every banner. However, you can see how creatively different they are. Every banner also spoke to the year it was made, depicting the values and issues alive at the time.