The highlight of the trip (besides falling into the Mediterranean in Barcelona) has to be Siena, Italy. Siena is an ancient city on a hill, and its Roman origins date back to the time of Augustus. My affection for this stop on our nightmarish schedule is due to the surprising nature of this city. I walked down implausibly narrow streets, only to turn a corner and be met with a thousand year old hospital or the Siena Duomo or the Piazza del Campo (the city square).
The tree in the foreground is a Mediterranean Pine. They are everywhere in and around Mediterranean Italy, and I want one in my yard. They look like big bonsai trees.
Also, there is nothing like standing in a square where James Bond has chased a bad guy (see the beginning of Quantum of Solace).
Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@24mm)
f4
ISO 200
1/750 sec.
