Le Terre di Poreta Spoleto

... 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 ...

... and everything. We had a great view to the surrounding hills.
Perugia is a quaint town with cobblestone streets. We got a bit turned around and ended up back in the same spot we started walking but eventually found our way around the town. Then we headed to Assisi. We walked through markets and saw numerous churches. The stones and narrow streets reminded me of Siena. We grabbed a milkshake and gelato and headed back to Perugia.

... Today the square is still a local meeting point for tourist and students alike.
The heart of the square belongs to Fontana Maggiore (Great Fountain) built between 1275 and 1278 by father and son team Nicola and Giovanni Pisano.
At the other end of the Piazza is the Cathedral of St Lorenzo with its pink façade, which was never truly completed. Work begun in 1345 and continued until 1587, however the door way was only built in the late 1700's.

Wednesday, We are alone in an Italian villa. It was magical. We slept in and then had breakfast on the veranda.

I made a picnic lunch out of the things we bought yesterday and feeling very brave we drove to Pettino. It is a small mountain village about a half an hour away from M & J's house. Reaching Pettino, we blinked and were out of town. Turning around and heading back down the hill to find a place ...

... restaurant to have dinner late, by our standard and arrive a half an hour too early. We had an antipasto as Mike suggested but didn't stop there, we ordered pasta. I had the potato gnocchi with truffles and mascarpone. Marty had the pasta with spicy red sauce. Stuffed with doggy bags in hand, we staggered back down the hill in the cool night air.

... and wine. We savor food and conversation for hours. Jet lag finally brings overwhelms me and Jill took us home. After we left, their friends exploded with questions about who were we and where we live, which made for more lively conversation. It inspired the poet, who hadn’t written all summer to write about what was discussed.

The next morning as Mike showed me their lovely Umbrian villa, we discover Jill doing ...

... going to let this inhibit my SHOPPING experience. Judy tried to locate some Italian Alka-seltzer, no luck so I got ready and we went on. I figured suffer at home or suffer shopping.................... So we met Ben at the bus station as planned. When we arrived she was there along with a new friend...............a dog!!! It had followed her from home. It ...