Castello da Verrazzano

This is the castle where Giovanni da Verrazzano [2 z's] was born and where they have been making superb Chianti for over 1000 years. It's located in Greve in Chianti smack in the center of the Chianti DOC region.
There are accommodations and superb dining and luncheons. I can attest to this by personal experience. A visit to Tuscany should include at least a visit. What makes this an ideal place to stay is that it's located almost equidistant from Florence and Siena and a public bus runs that takes you to both cities.

Siena's most famous piazza

This is the piazza where the famous Palio di Siena, a very old horse race that has horses from competing neighborhoods is held each summer. It is a very large space with delightful rinascimento buildings. These were shot with the Nikon D-200 with the Sigma 12-24 F 3.5-5.6 lens. A very difficult lens because of it's super wide angle range. The photo date from April of 2007.