Welcome to il palio. A wonderful, multi-layered event. Like an onion. This event has undergone stewing, grilling, stir-frying, chopping and caramelizing. The excitement, the fear, the anticipation- it was like wading through cooling pudding. By the time the horses came out into Piazzo del Campo to line up for the final race, I could barely move, the tension was so palpatle (Of course, it also could have been because I had been standing for oh, five hours, or because I was packed into the crowd like an anchovie.)
Precious, right?
If you zoom in on Layne's right eye, you can see the torre reflected in it. It's pretty neat-o.
This was when they were choosing the ten horses from a pool of 32. Everyone had ballots to fill out, with the numbers of their favorite horses. As you can see, even this run was dangerous (notice the riderless horse to the left).
Oh mamma, Layne and I are pros at awkward photos. This girl is wonderful.
It was a family affair. Bring your kids. Bring your dog. And relax, take it easy. Watch the sky change over il torre (which, if you climb before graduating before university, is bad luck- you apparently will never graduate. I'll take the risk.)
Our lovely friend from Messina.
They drove eight hours on scooters to come watch the Palio!
Oh mamma, Layne and I are pros at awkward photos. This girl is wonderful.
And Kathryn, so sad she's leaving in a few weeks.
The palio can't be explained with words. It's the emotion, the scents, the sounds. It's as simple as breathing, and flows into the life of Siena as naturally as one grows older. It's the pulse of the city that defines the Sienese people, making the palio so much more than ten horses running around a piazza.
Though this year, there were only nine for the first time. On Friday, one of the horses died in la prova, one of he practice runs they do.
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