My Voyage
Italy | Travel Blog | Travel Far

My Voyage

Italy | Travel Blog | Travel Far

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My Voyage to Siena

By James Mills from The Jimmy Mills Band

In August of 2019, I was sitting around in my apartment in New York City and wondering what to do with myself.  Unlike this plague that is making all of us mad from boredom, I had options; plenty of them, and I had time.  So, I started thinking.  OK, maybe I’ll fly to one of the Caribbean islands and chill out for a while.  Then I remembered it was August.  Way too hot down there.  Then the thought hit me; I can go to my place in Siena and stay there for a while.  But I had a problem:  I had no way to get around in Siena, Italy.  On previous visits, I would rent a scooter or a car just to make my way up to Castellina in Chianti, Montalcino, or other magnificent towns in Tuscany.  There is so much to see in Tuscany and staying put in one place, although I truly love Siena, was not an option for me. 

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  • Friencds in Siena
  • James in France
  • Friends in Switzerland

Step One: Montreal to Paris

So, I made a few calls and before you know it, I discovered I could fly my Harley Heritage Motorcycle from Montreal to Paris.  I just had to get to Montreal.  A couple of days later, I rode my motorcycle to Hanover, New Hampshire where I had dinner with my ex-wife at the Pine Restaurant at the Hanover Inn.  It was an enjoyable evening.  I rode mostly on backroads through Vermont and into New Hampshire which is simply lovely in early August.  Then the following day I made my way to Burlington, Vermont to see my son and his lovely wife.  I spent the night with my son and the next morning I made the quick trip to Montreal. 

I arrived in Montreal, headed to the airport and the next evening I hopped on my flight to Paris; my motorcycle was on a separate plane and both me and the bike would arrive the next morning.  I had a couple of soft case bags so I could tie them on the rack of my bike when I arrived in Paris.   These are much easier than lugging serious hard-case luggage around on a motorcycle.  When I landed, I went to the customs house to pick up my bike and lo and behold, it was there.  All was working according to plan.  Everything was good.    

  • Motorcycle in Siena

Next Step: Paris to Vaduz

Before I headed to Siena, I planned on visiting my dear friend Petra in Vaduz, Liechtenstein. That meant I had to go through France, Germany, and Switzerland to arrive there, all on back roads.  Not a problem.  So, I headed off that first morning from Paris and made it to Dijon, France, and spent the night in a nice little boutique hotel.  Dijon is not a beautiful town.  It is mostly industrial and littered with factories with not many people walking through the streets and boulevards.  It certainly is not Paris.  But I spent the night and had dinner at a nice restaurant and went off to the hotel and fell asleep, soundly. 

I awoke the next morning to the sound of birds chirping outside my window and had a hearty breakfast and began my journey to Vaduz.  I had plans to arrive in Vaduz on Thursday, but I arrived on Wednesday.  Fortunately, the hotel I was scheduled to stay in Vaduz had one last room and so fortune smiled upon me again and I got to spend two nights in beautiful Vaduz.  There was a major fair in Vaduz which meant the Gods had smiled upon me again.  I could have been “room less”. 

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Finally: Vaduz to Siena

After two beautiful days and nights in Vaduz, I headed to Siena on the highways.  I knew I had to get to Siena by 5 p.m.  My friend Alberto who is a lifelong resident of Siena told me that if I came after 5 p.m., he and his wife, Isa, would go to a friend’s house for dinner without me.  So off I went and arrived in Siena at about 4:30 in the afternoon.   I had dinner with Alberto, Isa, and their friends, Elizabeta and Franco.  It was a lovely evening; we ate good food and drank wine and had a fabulous night. 

For the next ten days, I stayed in my apartment in Siena.  I enjoyed the sights, sounds, and fragrances of Siena and the surrounding towns.  As I leapt from village to village, I found beauty in the simple things in Italy that make it one of the most magical places on this wondrous planet of ours.  Once again, I fell in love with all of it. 

  • Siena image
  • Siena image
  • Seina Image

Back to New York City

After my visit to Italy, I made my way home to New York City and after a few days, I had a job in Washington state and I flew off to take care of business.   To this day, my motorcycle is in Siena and sadly, Italy and the EU will not let Americans travel there because of COVID-19.  Let us hope that changes soon and the world lets us in again.  I was born to travel and as my mom always said to me, Jimmy, you have ants in your pants.      

James Mills

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James Mills
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