Day 3–Siena

After falling asleep while only ‘resting my eyes’ I didn’t get the uninterrupted sleep that I needed for my early start this morning from Malta.

I met my driver in the reception of the hotel at about 5.45am and we headed to the airport. The interesting thing is that even at this hour in Malta things are getting warm and there is a surprising amount of traffic on the road.

After tipping my driver for this trip (even though I really feel I shouldn’t have to but it does help the local economy after all) I headed into the terminal to book for my flight.

Bags checked, I headed through security and then through the duty free before emerging at the departures terminal. Since I had missed breakfast at the hotel, I grabbed a snack and come coffee before settling in for the two hour or so wait for my flight.

After passing through the gate I boarded the shuttle bus across the tarmac to the flight and took my seat on the short Air Malta to Rome flight.

About 90 minutes later we arrived in Rome and where once again shuttled by bus across the tarmac to the terminal.

The bags from the flight seem to take an inordinate amount of time to appear. Many others from the flight who were also standing around were getting pretty agitated by the delay but eventually they finally appeared and I was out the arrivals gate looking for my transfer.

 

You feel like such an idiot going up to each person holding a name board and checking whether it has your name. The secret I’ve found is that you need to be systematic in working through the vast array of people holding a sign and looking for someone.

 

Luckily, this time I found my name on a long list someone was holding up and soon had a driver and a ride to Rome Termini for my train trip to Siena via Florence.

 

One really hasn’t experienced ‘civilisation’ fully until you’ve experienced Rome traffic and it is something I’ve never experienced anywhere else on earth. Rome residents probably consider it normal but the concept of actual road rules has a very, very loose definition from what I can determine. However, it is a wonder of the modern world you need to experience at least once so it’ll make you appreciate how ‘good’ your home town traffic is!

I arrived at Rome Termini and took up position with my back to the wall and where I could see the departures board and any pick pockets. The weather was quite hot and there had just been a burst of rain so Rome was quickly becoming a sauna.

 

After about a 30 minute wait my designated train was finally displaying a departure track so I headed off in that direction. Problem was that the entrance to my track was undergoing work so I needed to enter from an adjacent track, which meant getting my paper train ticket out to show at the barrier. Painful.

 

I located my car and climbed aboard. I had booked a business coach which meant more space and easier access. After a brief battle to find my seat I deposited my luggage in the overhead rack and settled in for the trip.

 

Today was a day with a lot of moving parts. Airport transfer, flight, airport transfer, train, change, another train, taxi and so on. I was happy that things were working out.

 

The next challenge was going to be convincing the conductor that I had a valid train ticket, which I did have. When you pre-book from overseas it never seems to go smoothly with conductors. In this case I initially tried to show him a PDF copy on my iPad but that seemed to flummox him so had to revert back to the trusty print out, which I had kept handy as a backup.

 

After some extra attention to the ticket he finally handed it back to me while not throwing off the train. Achievement unlocked!

The weather had heated up and the sun was out as we sped through the Italian country side, next stop Florence.

The train from Rome had departed a little late which meant the arrival into Florence was also a little late. This left about 10 minutes or so to get off the arrival platform and find the departing train to Siena.

Seems easy enough eh? But this is Italy mind you. My train was scheduled to depart from platform 3. I checked the platforms behind me. 8, 7, 6, 5 but nothing lower. So I followed past platform 5 and found a laneway through to platforms 1 and 2 but where the hell is platform 3?? I could hear the clock ticking away and my stress levels increasing. I did another sweep of the platform but could find no mention of platforms 3 and 4! They have to be here somewhere.

Admitting defeat, I headed to the ticket office and asked a station employee who rolled their eyes at me and said platform 3 was at the end of platform 5. Ah ha! That laneway I had walked through basically had platforms 3 and 4 at the end.

I raced up platform 5 and discovered a training waiting there ready for departure. I still wasn’t sure this was the right train so I asked some inside whether the train went to Siena. I received an ‘I have no idea’ in an American accent which didn’t help much, so I continued a little further up and jumped on board. I really need to speak to a local not some foreigner I thought.

I still had a feeling this was not the right train as the automatic doors closed behind me. I opened the doors again and looked at the timetable board for the current train I was on and saw that it was in fact the incorrect train number. Damm, wrong train I thought as I hopped off. This train must be on platform 4.

That mean through a process of elimination (d’oh) the train on the very next platform must be the right one. I saw a conductor waiting on the platform so I asked whether this train went to Siena. I received exactly the same eye rolling as before but confirmed it was indeed the right train. Phew. All aboard.

This train to Siena is a regional train and very downmarket from the high speed one I caught from Rome. In these trains you basically sit anywhere and you don’t the luxury of air-conditioning and in this case, even windows that opened. All aboard the sweat box to Siena. 

I sat back and watched the countryside roll past while enjoying a complimentary sauna.

Luckily, I didn’t have to battle any conductors about my legitimacy to be on this train by justifying my paperwork.

After about an hour or so we arrived in Siena and I grabbed a taxi to my hotel. This proved an interesting experience as the driver manoeuvred through the the tight streets of the city centre while dodging the constant throng of tourists. In the sweaty mood I was now in I don’t think I would have been as patient if I was behind the wheel.

Finally, bathed in a pool of sweat, I arrived at my hotel and booked in. I enjoyed a refreshing shower and then caught up on some rest, knowing that the twilight extended well into the evening.

After a refreshing nap, I headed back onto the humid streets towards the centre to take in a few sights before finding some where to eat.

First stop was the Campo, where I checked out the climbing of the clock tower (tomorrow’s assignment) as well as taking a full walk around.

They are beginning to prepare the square for the famous horse race held here (Palio de Siena).

Next stop, on the return journey to the hotel, was the Duomo, where I was just in time to hear the tower chime for the top of the hour.

Unfortunately, on the short walk back to the hotel I didn’t find anywhere to eat that really took my fancy so I headed to the hotel restaurant which overlooks the picturesque valley.

I am the first one to admit that food for me is purely functional but I gotta say the food here is spectacular. Dinner was magnificent and really makes me appreciate being in Italy. It really makes an impact how different the cuisine tastes here.

As the twilight finally began to recede (at about 10pm) and still sweating thanks to the temperature, I put another day under my belt and headed to my room for some well earned air-conditioning and rest. Most sites don’t open till after 10am tomorrow so a day finally to relax and get some sleep. Apart from the heat, I’m looking forward to exploring Siena in more depth tomorrow.

Day 2–Malta

After an early big hotel breakfast I headed off again, across the water courtesy of the ferry service, back into Valetta. My aim was to take in a few museums before jumping on the bus for a hop-on-hop-off tour.

First stop was the Palace Armoury which is basically two rooms filled with all sorts of armours and weapons. There is also plenty of history to take in, especially about the Great Siege of Malta back in 1565 when the Knights Hospitaller were able to repulse a large Turkish force bent on invasion.

Also in the grounds of the palace is the State Rooms exhibit that is also included price. It sits around the lovely gardens that now form part of the presidential palace.

There is not a huge amount to see here but none the less I found it very interesting to look inside all the state rooms and admire the decorations and the reliefs on the walls and the ceilings.

The state rooms surround a lovely court as you can see above.

I believe these rooms are still used today to hold official parliamentary functions. Nothing like having a state dinner in a room with over 500 years of history!

On the way back to the ferry I popped into the Basilica of Our Lady of Mount Carmel which is the large dome you can see as you approach Valetta across the water.

Close by is St Paul’s Anglican cathedral.

I then grabbed a tour bus and headed on a 3 hour (yes, 3+ hour!) tour of the western and north part of the island.

The tour headed in a clockwise direction so we firstly when near Valetta and to the sea port.

where one of the big cruise lines was about to head off.

From there we headed to Rabat through some typical ‘middle eastern’ type landscape. Although I was staying on the bus it looked like there would have been lots to see in Rabat had I chosen to get off.

From there we did wind our way through some other interesting sites it would have been great to take the time to stop and see but alas not for today.

As the tour began to approach the north coast of the island the more ‘'resort-ish’ it became, filled will massive waterfront hotels, seaside apartments and what appeared to be English tourists seeking the sun.

This was pretty boring I thought and given the intensity of the sun beating down on me, I probably would have been better off in a museum. Alas, I was stuck with the tour until we returned to Valetta and I did pay the price getting somewhat sunburnt during the process.

With the remaining time for my time in Malta running short, I made a beeline for the war museum at Fort St Elmo.

Luckily the museum was still open, even though it was late in the day.

In hindsight, I think I would have gotten more value (and less sunburnt) if I’d stayed in Valetta and toured the museums and monuments.

I really enjoyed this museum and learnt quite a lot, which is always a good measure of a museum. It is housed in an old fort and inside a number of different room, with each room covering a historical period. The displays and the multi-media presentations are top notch and I highly recommend this as a ‘must see’ if you are ever visiting.

I grabbed dinner in an open air cafe in Valetta, amongst all the pigeons, and took my last ferry ride across the bay, knowing that I would leaving very early tomorrow for a new location, in a new country.

Although I was only here for a short while, I’d certainly come back. I’d give the ‘resort’ stuff a miss (I’ve had enough sun here thanks) but ensure I visited all the historical sites as well as the few that are in the interior. History is what makes Malta so interesting for me and you’d need a few days to do it properly. So avoid, the typical ‘holiday resort’ stuff and head for the relics and you won’t go wrong here.