Field Trips

So this week we have gone on two field trips with the IES group.
On Monday we went to visit the church and headquarters of one of the contrada. Contrada are the neighborhoods of Siena and they run the Palio. There are 17 and they each have their own name, colors and an animal symbol. We visited the Onda contrada which happens to be the one we live in and their symbol is the dolphin. Each year they have a ceremony and baptize the babies into the contrada. You have to be baptized into the contrada to be a real member even if you are older but are not technically a part of the contrada and have been invited to join. If a member of one contrada marries someone from another contrada and they have children they have to decide which one to baptize them into, and it's a huge decision. Once you are a member yo are a member until death. Each contrada has their own church that is only for use by members of the contrada where they hold weekly mass and weddings and other events. In the bottom of the church there are all the costumes that they wear for the historical parade that happens every year before the Palio and also a room with all the Palio banners they have ever won. On the ceiling they have the coat of arms of each family in the contrada. The contrada's are a very serious business and each has 2 sister contradas and one rival contrada and if they can't win the Palio they try to make sure the rival doesn't win. Our guide, a little old Italian man named Pietro, talked for a good 10 minutes about the rivalry they have and how extreme it is. The traditions of the contrada have been around for centuries and they still wear the traditional costumes for special events.
On Tuesday we went to an archaeological dig on a hilltop in Tuscany. We took a bus to Poggibonsi and then took a hike up a steep hill and arrived at the site. We then got a tour by one of the archaeologist and it was super beautiful. The site was really cool and they have been working on it for 14 years and they have uncovered a lot of remains. Now they are working on a church. It was really neat to go see how the settlement changed from huts to houses to a farm to a fortress to a city.
That's the thing about Siena there are traditions here like the Palio and Contradas that have been going on for centuries, and I live in a building that is at least 400-500 years old where a Pope was born. I don't just study the history and culture but I see it everyday and experience it.