a ONCE in a LIFETIME experience !

Have you ever wanted to do something that has not been done for IMG_0584centuries? Well… while you Rent a villa in Tuscany you can do just that... go through  Heaven’s door or “La Porta del Cielo” in Siena, not bad if you are staying at Villas for rent in Tuscany as Heaven’s door has not been opened since the Cathedral in Siena was built in the first part of XXIII.  With spectacular architectural vistas - an everyday occurrence when you enjoy Villa rentals in Tuscany as this region is steeped in majestic cathedrals, graceful towers, a joy to wake up to while on Holiday villas in Lucca  and fabulous fortresses and fortressed churches of which two fine examples stand near La Collina del Sole So if you are  visiting Lucca Villa Rental  between now and 27th October we highly recommend you check out “La Porta del CieloSienna not only has a very beautiful Cathedral built in the traditional black and white horizontal striped decorated walls, it has the very famous Central Piazza where the Palio is held of which we wrote in our focus on Siena blog giving a few of our favourite places and eateries View from Cathedral Siena has wonderfully [almost ] carless  streets and walkways, Vendemiawhere you can see the original seat of the once might Bank Monte Paschi di Siena which is very austere façade. When you drive to Siena from La Collina del Sole  it is a great opportunity to swing by and check out Montalcino of “Super Tuscan Wines fame, and by the way Montalcino is not only about wine the town itself has many treasures to discover. Cathedral But let’s Focus on the once in a lifetime opportunity of walking through Heavens Door, for €25 you get to see the cathedral from the giddy heights of the walkways close to the ceiling, where only the builders who built the Cathedral and their overseers got to see, in many cases you find drawings and sketches which were directly drawn onto the walls by the cathedrals architects and overseers.   You get to see the internal walls of the Duomo, the multi-coloured stained glass windows by Ulisse De Matteis,  the corridors and altar as from a bird’s eye view,  You will also get the most spectacular views of Siena itself and the Basilica di San Domenico, la Fortezza Medicea, and the whole cupola of the chapel of John the Baptist.  WELL WORTH the climb, the money and the special effort to get there and once you have descended from the giddy heavenly heights you can tumble into Gelateria Grom where you can find wonderfully rich ice creams, which are proudly made from ethically sourced ingredients and even ice creams for lactose intolerant clients, so you see life on earth can be rather good too  ! GELATO ! ! ! by Rebecca Jensen