We'll be spending a week in Tuscany. We're staying in an apartment in Siena, supposedly just a 10 minute walk to the Campo (and just across from the bus depot). Does anyone have advice on Siena (restaurants, sites, etc.)? Is the bus depot really just 10 minutes from the Campo? Is that an okay part of town? Also, what towns within an hour's drive should top our list? Thanks for any help!

Bringing your message back up to the top, or "topping" - - since it has already "sunk" way off the first page, in only three hours.<BR><BR>Hope you get some answers, since I don't know about inner Siena.<BR><BR>Welcome to Fodors Travel Talk.<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>

If it's Gramsci station, then that's about right. I stayed at Hotel Chiusarelli, very close to Gramsci station, and it's about 10 minutes.

to the top, for barbara<BR>

Dear Barbara,<BR><BR>My daughter lived in Siena last year. I will try to get her to reply to you. I know the restaurant "Il Cane e Gato" (The Dog and the Cat) has been highly recommended on this board. My daughter ate here and said it was one of the most memorable meals ever. Be prepared to eat long and hard (4 hours). I believe the bill (as per my Mastercard!) was approximately $80.00 for 2. I know it wasn't that much at all. I know of all the surrounding towns she visited, she really thought Volterra was beautiful. <BR>Enjoy,<BR>Denise<BR>

You may be assured that's less than 15 min to the Campo. IMO every single quarer inside the walls is ok. Haven't seen any part of the old town one may remotely call seedy. Regarding sites, beised the obvious strolls on Via di Citt&aacute; and Via Banchi di Sopra, I wouldn´t want to miss the Palazzo Pubblico and Duomo (including its museum). Other interesting sites include the Pinacoteca, Basilica di San Domenico and Battistero San Giovanni. Be sure to have an early breakfast on a balcony overlooking the Campo (when it´s deserted) at least once. Walking from your appartment to the Campo through Via Banchi di Sopra (then Via di Citt&aacute you´ll find the coffe shop (opens around 7:15am). Montalcino (you may add San Antimo, Monte Olivetto Maggiore, Pien]za and/or Mointepulciano) and San G. (you may add Volterra) are a must. Another interesting daytrip is the Gallo Nero Chianti district circuit (San Felice, Castello di Broilio, Gaiole, Radda, Castellina)

Out of curiosity from ppp which is the best of the choices of hilltowns to see --that is if you had to pick only one other which would it be.<BR>And to Barbara do go to the Cane E Gatto for dinner. We've gone twice and it was wonderful. You have to have a reservation. You get there at 8 p.m. and won't finish until about 11 p.m. The chef is wonderful and does great things with the food. It's a very tiny restaurant only serving about 6 tables. The food is served in courses, but by the time desert comes you're almost not interested you're so full. Marilyn

[email protected]<BR>Paulo, Welcome back. Miss your posts.

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Well, Marilyn, Siena is hors concours! Maybe because I spent a whole Palio week there when I was a grad student in the US, maybe because I'm just fascinated by Piazza del Campo, its medieval air, with its walls, gates, fortress and Goothic towers and palaces, I just don't know. IMO, it has it all. Its walled city is fairly small, yet it's a real city, with real people going about their most varied businesses and jobs. It has an university, and thus a pretty active cultural life. It has art, specially translated by its masters Duccio, Martini and Lorenzetti and its beautiful Romanesque-Gothic Duomo, and it has tradition. Its "contrade" have little parallel elswhere. We just love to, in the late afternoon, choose one of them to give a closer look: to visit its parish church, chapter house and hangout bars and to chat with locals on their traditions and, of course, the next Palio race.<BR><BR>So, in the province of Siena, I guess that my preferred distant second is Montalcino. Elsewhere in the region, my hands down preferred hill town is actually in Umbria: Assisi.<BR><BR>Jim, <BR>

Siena is unique and wonderful. It has one of the lowest crime rates in the modern world. If you're lucky you'll get to see some pagentry displayed by one of the Contradas in their wonderful costumes. Within easy acess are famous and not so famous hill towns. You're quite close by train to Florence, Pisa and Lucca.

Thanks to all of you for bringing my message back to the top! I couldn't believe that just minutes after posting it, so many other messages popped right on top of it. Grazie!

[email protected] says you're welcome<BR>

Paulo, <BR>Nice to know you haven't abandoned us.

Barbara: For resturants try Osteria Nonna Gina and Osteria Da Divo.Enjoy.

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Thanks to all...still looking for any other suggestions re: Siena or surrounding towns not to miss (we'll have a car). Grazie!