| Learn the local customs of Siena. Tips and photos posted by real travelers and Siena locals. Siena Map |
 | Siena Local Customs | Tips 1 - 10 of 25 |  |
 by Helga67
The little sign here on the wall next to that lovely lamp is this of the contrada of the Anguila. It consists of a two headed eagle, an imperial crown and a golden sun.
Twice a year there is a competition between the different contrade called the Palio. This feast is being held on 2 July and 16 August. There is a horse race on the Piazza del Campo that only takes 90 seconds. The winning contrada gets a silk palio (drape). The race is preceded by a parade, animated by splendid costumes, drums and the flag waving. Leave a Comment
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 the street-lamp marks the
terrotory of an Contrada by croisbeauty, 2 more photosLeave a Comment
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 Tartuca parade by rexvaughanLeave a Comment
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 Monteriggioni by 78Eva
Every July, there is a medieval festival there that you should definitely go to if you're in the area. Last time I was there they had Angelo Branduardi play music!
Many people walk around in medieval costumes. There are stand where people show how medieval things were made, i.e. pottery, masks, food etc.
A fun thing is to eat in a medieval way! When you go to eat and you pay, you get an earthen plate and cup that you may actually keep (I still have mine). Of course you eat without knife and fork. You see people everywhere biting into and gnawing at pieces of meat, dripping juices!
It is a beautiful festival with a wonderful atmosphere. Leave a Comment
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The seat of this Contrada is in Via del Comune 44, which belongs to Terzzo di Camollia. As all other Contradas it has its own church, built on the contributions by its members. The oratory dates back to 1680 ands is dedicated to Santissimo Dio. Leave a Comment
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The seat of Contrada della Torre is situated in Via Salicotto 103, which belongs to the Terzzo di San Martino. Torre is winner of Palio in 2005 and some pictures, you can see here, are taken during the victory celebrations. By the way, it was long time waited victory and the members were trully exaltated. Leave a Comment
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Siena is steeped in many traditions, many dating back to the medieval times. One of the city's most enduring is the contrade system that divides the town into 17 districts. Each district or contrada has its own church, colors, traditions, and symbols - usually in form of medieval animal mascots.
Loyalty to one's contrada is fierce as is the competition among them - particularly during the Palio. Twice every year, in summer, on 2nd of July and 16th of August, 10 of the 17 contrade compete in this exhilirating 60-second horse race around Il Campo. The Palio is arguably one of Italy's most spectacular festivals and is beamed live over national television.
If it's impossible to be in Siena to witness the Palio live, there's a 20-minute documentary at the city's only cinema, Cinema Moderno on Piazza Tolomei, showing between May and October. Unfortunately, I visited Siena in November, so it was "off-season." If all things fail, get a DVD copy of the Jamed Bond movie, Quantum of Solace. The opening action scenes characteristic of James Bond movies were filmed in Siena during the Palio. The downside is, the cameras were more focused on Daniel Craig rather than the race itself. Leave a Comment
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Only a few cities in Italy can trace their roots directly to the legendary brothers Remus and Romulus - no not even Renaissance Queen Florence. Rome, of course, and yes, Florence's main rival, Siena.
According to legend, Siena was founded by the son of Remus. The city takes as much pride in this as it does take its Palio seriously. This pride is very much visible in the ubiquitous statues of the wolf feeding Romulus and Remus that dot the city - and even the Duomo (picture 3). Leave a Comment
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 Lega Nord supporters in Siena by croisbeautyLeave a Comment
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Restaurants either close after lunch or stop serving a full menu until 7pm. I remember being hungry after walking around the city and having to wait to be served real food.
On the upside though, it's really nice to sit outside the restaurants in the square on a cool day. Leave a Comment
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