My Top 3 Weekend/Day Trips While Studying in Siena

1. San Gimignano. Our day trip to San Gimignano was actually sponsored by IES, and was required for the History of Food and Culture course I’m taking! We did have to get up pretty early—our bus left at around 8 A.M. if I remember correctly. The first place we went to in San Gimignano was Poggio di Camporbiano, a cheese farm. There, we met some very cute dogs and learned how they make different types of organic cheeses and the importance of producing and eating local food! We got to walk around the farm and see all of the cows and even chickens, and then our class was able to have a private cheese tasting. From there, we all traveled by bus to Fattoria Poggio Alloro, a wine factory. We took a quick tour around the vineyard and then were treated to a Tuscan lunch paired with the DOCG wine, Vernaccia di San Gimignano—which was delicious! After that, we traveled by bus again to the city of San Gimignano, where we got to explore on our own and shop for a few hours! The city is a Medieval town like Siena, but much smaller.
2. Florence. I went on a two-day trip to Florence with my friends Madelyn and Elke! This was the first time I had ever booked a hostel, and I was very proud of myself. We arrived there around 10 A.M. on Friday and went shopping in the city center of Florence. We also stopped in the Cinema Bookstore until it was time to check into our hostel at 2 P.M. After that, we went to a jewelry store in Santo Spirito that Elke found on TikTok, and got a very delicious two-hour-long aperitivo while we waited for our friend Sofi to meet us for dinner. At dinner, Sofi, Madelyn, and I shared a Bistecca alla Fiorentina (Elke is a vegetarian :/) which was delicious and HUGE! The next day, Elke, Madelyn, and I woke up early to go to the Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens. There is so much beautiful art, history, and architecture there—one of my favorites. From there, we got lunch, walked around for a few more hours, and then took the train home. We didn’t plan the trip that far in advance, so we couldn’t really get tickets to places like the Uffizi Gallery or Palazzo Vecchio without waiting in a long line or going out of our preferred price range.
3. Colle di Val d’Elsa. This trip was so beautiful! I’m not really sure how much there is to do in Colle di Val d’Elsa, but it was recommended to us that we go on a hike there! After getting off the bus, the seven of us from IES Abroad that went hiked for about an hour to get to a waterfall. The trail was really gorgeous, though there were a few scary rock paths that we needed to use to cross the stream a few times (I was not a fan of that). I have never seen water that blue! Once we got to the waterfall, we swam and sat in the water for a few hours. The water was freezing, but it was perfect for the 95-degree day. Then we hiked the hour back to the bus stop and got home at about 5 P.M.

An honorable mention is Pisa and the Marina di Pisa beach! After taking our touristy pictures holding up the Tower of Pisa, we walked around and went to the Marina di Pisa beach, where we got very sunburned! But, it was a fun and relaxing day.