Mi dispiace! No photos today. The attempted trip to Siena turned into a slight disaster due to my lack of understanding of Italian bus systems. I had the address of a nun-run hotel that I was planning to stop by, but attempting to follow the provided directions somehow left me at a bus stop on the outskirts of town. After spending hours hiking up and down icy hills and trying to find my way to the city center, I gave up, returned to the train station via street signs and dead reckoning, and caught the next train back to Florence to nurse my wounded ego.

I am exhausted, sore, a little overwhelmed, and sad to have lost an entire day to this, but I am really coming to love Florence–good, because I’ll be spending a lot of time here starting in January–and I think I’ll hang out here until it’s time to head to Rome (hotel reserved starting the 23rd). I’ve found a comfortable youth hostel that I think will do for the next few days, and I’m excited to do some more in-depth sightseeing here.

Listening to Italians chatting on their cell phones can be entertaining, especially as they say their good-byes. They seem to like the word “ciao” as much as I do and will say it repeatedly, all mushed together, as a farewell. Most men stop at two repetitions (and I think this “ciaociao” is mostly reserved for girlfriends), but women may say it five or six times in rapid succession.

It’s currently raining, which will either melt the snow or freeze it overnight into an icy deathtrap. Weather Underground reports rain and (for the most part) temperatures above freezing.

Tomorrow, conditions providing: let’s go to some museums!