We were welcomed to Siena by a colorfully dressed marching band, ages 5 to quite old, many carrying multicolored flags. We knew it was going to be a good day! We walked through town, seeing palazzo after palazzo, and the oldest bank in Italy and the world, Bianca Monte dei Paschi di Siena, founded in 1472. We walked through the Piazza del Campo with its 14th century Torre del Mangia towering above the city. We bought tickets to see the Duomo complex and enjoyed every moment of seeing one of the most ornate churches ever built, from the inlaid floors to the cupola to the layered green and white marble pillars. We loved Siena from the moment we arrived!
