Smaller cities - San Gimignano

Known as the City of the Beautiful Towers...

It's a small, walled, medieval hill-top town about a half an hour north of Siena.

It is one of the few towns that has managed to *keep* its towers - at least 13 of the original 70+ that they had at one point, I believe I read. *Where* they put all those, I can't imagine. (If you've seen the movie "Tea with Mussolini", the last third of the movie takes place in San Gimignano).

You have to walk up into it, through its large, stone gates. The streets are narrow, a bit touristy, but have some lovely character.

The walls are old and established - many are sprouting!

By now, you know me and windows! Three distinct styles are juxtaposed nicely here.

Smaller cities - San Gimignano

Assortments -

The embellishments.

The ubiquitous stuffed pig at the butcher's. These did NOT make my fairy-nieces happy. They are staunchly vegetarian and animal lovers (*living* animals!)

I loved these little, asymmetric carvings.

You could climb to the top of the hill that the city is built on. There you were greeted by a lovely panoramic view of fields and orchards and the occasional dwelling.

But my mother's favorite part - the gelato! San Gimignano has a gelateria that kept winning 'the country's best' for years in succession, until the owner quit entering. Of course, we had to try it out - and it was not overrated! I had passion fruit and saffron that day. Fab-yoo-lous!