The old city walls are centered around The towers we mentioned earlier and two adjacent piazzas, Piazza Nettuna (Neptune) and Piazza Maggiore. The first, as implied, honors the God Neptune. Word has it that the Pope of the time was not pleased with the "endowment" portrayed in the sculpture, so he ordered it to be altered. The artist, Giambologna, did so, but supposedly arranged Neptune's out stretched hand to look like something else when viewed from the right angle. Don't know of any truth there, but it makes a good story.
The main piazza next to Nettuna, is Maggiore, a large public square on which the large church, Basilica of St Petronius, that is currently covered in scaffolding. Inside this church there is a large sundial carved into the floor, as well as a pendulum swinging on one side, strange oddities for a church, given they contradict the geocentric biblical views of their time.
To the west of the piazza is a large building housing museums and the town hall. Surrounding the piazzas on the side streets are many shops, restaurants, and markets.
Today, we did something a bit different, and hiked to a church which stands out on a hillside south of the city, San Luca. To get there, we had to cross town from our hotel, then climb up the hill to the church. From the hotel, this was about a 9.25 mile round trip. The unique part of the trip, however, is the majority of the trail, up the hillside, is covered by a very long portico (3.5 km long). So, starting in the morning, we made good time and stayed pretty cool most of the trip. The walkway under the portico is made up of stone ramps and stairways and is a pretty easy climb. The views were good and the change from the city appreciated.
Now we prepare for the train to Milan for one day before flying home.