Agriturismo Villa Finetti Gubbio

December 7, 2009



Didn't know what to expect of Perugia, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised. It actually have a very medieval feel to it. It sits atop a mountain and I can see why it was originally located here as one gets a very beautiful view of the valley below….and any wandering mauraders! Italy is on a 4 day holiday since the Feast of the Immaculate Conception falls on Tuesday. The ...

... was a spiritual contemporary of St. Francis and an enormously interesting woman! She founded the Sorelle Povere di Santa Chiara (Order of the Poor Ladies, now known as the “Poor Clares”). The Basilica di Santa Chiara, from the 13th century, has steep ramparts and a striking façade. The white and pink stone on the exterior of the church, brought in from the nearby Monte Subasio (the case with many of Assisi’s buildings), makes it look like it’s ...

... today. That has to be my favorite saint. Very busy here even though end of season. No wireless interent. We have one more day and we start home. I think we are ready to get home. It has been beautiful here and I have learned so much, but all good things must come to an end. See you all next week I hope.

... the most interesting surprize.

Perugia is surrounded by modern buildings and from the parking area there is a very modern, completely automated "minitram" connecting like a long rollercoaster, through the village below and under the mountain to the far side of Perugia. This is probably the most modern and efficient devise in all of Italy.

Arriving at the far side of Perugia, we were herded ...

... pizzeria where I had delicious lasagna. After lunch we browsed through the many stands. Sample after sample led to some major purchases. It was hard to pass up the various chocolate products when the smell just filled the air. There was everything from chocolate beer to chocolate “pills” to chocolate pasta!!

Heaven.

I’ll update you soon,

Siara

... My friend has a nice, sparsely decorated flat in the heart of the village. We settled in and then went to the neighboring town of Amelia for a nice dinner.

Licia had worked in that region for a few months and had been recommended to a good restaurant near Amelia. We drove over the rolling hills to the small hilltop village ...

... the pool but the second day we went back into Perugia and had a look around before catching a train to Assisi. The train station isn't in the centre of Perugia, so we had to catch a mini-metro to the top of the hill which gave us a great view before exploring the town on the way back down. We spent the afternoon in Assisi, a short train ride from Perugia.
Assisi is a major destination for millions of pilgrims due to its religious ...

... this route before it was through the dark and didn't see any of the beauty) from Florences was some of the most beautiful we have seen so far in Italy. The train takes you past Lago Trasimeno a drop dead gorgeous lake with picturesque islands floating on its crystal surface, surrounded by lush green hills. Now this is the real heart of Italy, were you slow your pace to suit the life around you.

One of Italy's best preserved hill towns ...

... were truly aweful (as we were trying to avoid the tolls roads) - saw heaps better in Asia (and given our track record...that's a big call!) We headed for a festival in Gubbio, near Perugia, that dated back from medieval times, in this quaint little walled village (about 30,000 people). The whole town barracks for one of three saints (known by us as ...

... Now we know about travel times, we could have made it up from Naples in around four hours. We also saw a photograph (infact it was in dozens of shops) of the mountain and the town, taken at Christmas. They erected a huge scaffolding frame almost at the top of the mountain, and on the screen, set up lights in the shape of a huge star, the rest of the mountain was covered in lights that outlined a giant Christmas tree, and coloured lights for the decorations. The photograph was ...