It is done!

At the last post both the Office and the Good Government fell... and the surprise winner came out of nowhere to win this race: and the winner was ONDA! That is to say, I will be living in the Onda (the Wave) Contrada, on the Casato di Sopra, a main thoroughfare that starts at the Piazza del Campo and curves its way upwards towards the most ancient part of town, the Castelvecchio. 

The owners, an elderly couple who has let their grandchildren use the flat for the last couple of years, took  the weekend to ponder my offer.  This morning, however,  the whole family turned up at the estate agents office to sign the contract, and at the end of February  I will be able to take possession of this flat which measures just under 200m2 and is situated on the 4th floor of this 17th century building, where it enjoys the benefit of a lift, as the estate agents would put it. It must have some of the most spectacular views in town, stretching in  a semi circle from the east across all of the south of Siena! 

It has a balcony which overlooks both the Duomo and the Torre del Mangia;  the bedrooms and the kitchen and even the  bathroom overlook my present home by the  Santa Maria dei Servi.  

The little alley way which runs down the side of the building, called Vicolo del Sambuco, must be the steepest in the whole of Siena. 

It is not a grand Palazzo like the Good Government or the Office- it needs some modernization, but it will be quite splendid I believe!

It is really quite well situated for the plan that is forming: it is five minutes walk up the hill to the Dante Alighieri language school, which is frequented by many people from all over the world who stay for a minimum of a week and often a month or more- they are not just young gap-year students but often older, perhaps  recently retired people who are intending to enjoy their time by learning a new language and immersing themselves into a great ancient European city. They have money, taste and culture, a sense of fun and curiosity- they are looking for a great place to stay. I intend to try to supply this  in just a few months! There will be only three rooms to let- each with bathroom of course. Much of the space will be used for communal areas where the view can be enjoyed by all. 

How appropriate that I will be an ONDA- I am a Piscean after all!

The Onda Contrada traditionally represented the Carpenters, and their church, just around the corner, is the San Giuseppe- St. Joseph. The origin of the Contrada  is lost in the mist of time and legend as so much else here - some say the connection with the sea goes back to the Sienese Republic when Siena's territory stretched as far as Grossetto with its Mediterranean port.

 

 And tomorrow dear Andrew is coming to visit.  This feels very apposite:  Andrew my Notting Hill neighbour  was one of those 'founding member' friends that was there with me the first time we arrived in Djenne so many years ago- it is his birthday tomorrow and we will celebrate that, as well as the acquisition of the flat, in one of Siena's best restaurants tomorrow night!

We are enjoying a sunset drink at Hotel Djenne Djenno above in 2008- let's hope there will be sunset drinks on my balcony in Siena soon...