Italian trip to Siena

A report by Ms Kemal-ur-Rahim

The journey went well, in spite of the early wake up and clock change. We arrived in Siena ahead of schedule, and the pupils were collected by their hosts for their first domenica in famiglia. Some went for a tour of the centro storico, others lunched with friends and family of their hosts, Felix made pizza, and Alex even watched Allegra win a local tennis tournament. We spoke to them all that evening, and they all felt happy and welcomed into their Sienese homes.

We met them on Monday after the first hour of Italian liceo, where they had attended lessons in History, Italian Literature, Chemistry and Maths. We walked to the university for some intense grammar revision, after which we picked them up for lunch in a local osteria. In an effort to ward off a pasta-coma, we then sent them on a 3-hour treasure hunt where they had to discover facts about Siena by walking around, but also making enquiries with the locals. Alberto and Luca were most displeased to find out that they had been given false information regarding how many sections Piazza del Campo is divided into after they counted themselves, and Oscar and Marcello were indignant that they had been misinformed about the meaning of some local slang. The treasure hunt ended up being hotly contested, with a seemingly very competitive group all coming out with very similar scores, but Louis and Chris emerged victorious and were thrilled with their prizes of wild boar socks and a wild boar mug.

Tuesday saw more lessons at the liceo, and then a morning spent at a local cookery school. They prepared three types of pasta and accompanying sauces: gnocchi, ravioli filled with spinach and ricotta, and hand rolled pici. They all seemed to very much enjoy getting stuck in to the cooking; Alex, Alberto and Levi tried to break the record for the longest picio, and Seb sat down at the restaurant piano to serenade us with a mini concerto. We then ate their creations for lunch, and I can confirm that every dish was delicious, especially the ravioli with butter and sage.

The main highlights of the last few days have been a detailed tour of the Contrada del Leocorno, and a trip to sunny San Gimignano to sample some of the most famous gelato in Italy. It was a real honour to be invited into the church, museum, and even the gardens to see the stables of Leocorno, thanks to contacts we have made through the liceo. One of the contradaioli told the pupils about the history of the Palio, and notable wins that the contrada have had, explained how the design of the pali have changed over the centuries, and even told the story of one fantino who, after being punished after an unsuccessful race, cursed the contrada for the next 17 years.

We travelled by coach to nearby San Gimignano, a walled, medieval town famous for its towers, and its gelato. There, the pupils were treated to another detailed explanation, this time about the difference between gelato and ice cream, with Signor Dondoli claiming that his gelato is practically a health food, because of its natural, mostly organic ingredients, and lack of artificial colours and flavours. Then they were able to sample three flavours, including some more unusual options that are trademarked to this particular gelateria; popular choices included saffron, ricotta and blueberries, and local cantucci biscuits in an Italian-style cookies and cream.

On the final day, the pupils had their final lesson at Unistrasi, followed by lunch in the Orto de’ Pecci, before some free time in the afternoon to explore Siena a little more and an opportunity to buy gifts to take home. In the evening, they enjoyed a pizza conclusiva together with all the hosts, before an early start the next morning to travel back to London.

We had a lovely trip, the pupils were excellent company – I receive constant compliments from the teachers and Italian host parents about how well behaved they are, and how good their Italian is; I am very proud of them.