We had to meet at 8 AM, which is earlier than I ever even have class. Ugh. We were late but fortunately the bus came at 8:30 to get us. The ride down from Perugia and up to Assisi is nauseating in a bus because the streets are small and it’s hard to maneuver around in them. I would never want to be a bus driver.
We got to Assisi bright and early, but our first destination wasn’t quite in the city. We walked down the steepest hill I’ve ever been on down to San Damiano. It’s a little church nearly a mile away. Legend has it that the crucifix at San Damiano spoke to San Francesco (St. Francis… cool right?) when he was praying there. It told him to “Rebuild my church.” Also, St. Clare established her order there. Francis was there at the end of his life when he was really sick. It was pretty cool. There were paintings of a bunch of Franciscan saints and such. The church was really small. There was also this really cute cat outside. Jussayin.
The trek back up the hill was tough. Even when the ground leveled off my legs were like “WHY ARE YOU ALWAYS DOING THIS TO ME?????????” Whatever. We made it back up to the top and ventured into Assisi. Our first stop was a playground. We’re obviously adults.
Next was the Basilica di Santa Chiara (Saint Clare). The building was huge and beautiful. Inside everyone had to be silent since it’s a pretty holy place. The San Damiano crucifix was hanging in the church. It was bigger than I expected it to be. The next part led us into the lower level of the church. First we looked at a bunch of artifacts from their time: Clare’s hair is in a box, some shoes she made for Francis to cover his stigmata, their tunics, some other cool little pieces of their lives. It was pretty cool to see.
On the other side of the lower level was the body of Saint Clare. I’m not sure if it was the real body (they claim it is) but it looked like a wax figure to me. She was really small. It was both really cool and really creepy to see the body of a Saint. Especially one that some of the most hated classes at SBU are named after. There were also things on the walls like paintings of important events in Clare’s life. It was a pretty cool to be a part of.
After that we wandered around Assisi (it was one of the most beautiful days that we’ve been in Italy) until we reached a small chapel that was built on the alleged spot of the birth of Francis. We also saw the statue of his parents. Then we saw an old Roman temple that was pretty cool. Next we went to Santa Maria Maggiore, another big and impressive church. In a nearby piazza Francis renounced his father to follow his father in heaven. And he took all of his clothes off in front of everyone to show that he wasn’t following his earthly father (a wealthy cloth merchant) anymore. Apparently Francis took his clothes off a lot. Later Clare got approval to run away from her family and join the friars at this church too.
My favorite place in Assisi was next: The Basilica di San Francesco. For a guy who really loved poverty (even Dante wrote about how Francis married lady poverty), his church is freaking huge and amazing. We all just stopped and stared when we turned the corner and saw it. Inside there is a series of frescoes depicting events in the life of Francis. Some of them are in better shape than others. The lower part of the Basilica houses the body of St. Francis, but it isn’t visible like Clare’s is. When we went down there the first time there was a prayer service going on so we didn’t get close. Mary and I hung around and shopped at the gift shop then went and sat closer when the service was over. It was one of the more spiritual places I’ve ever been in my life. I still can’t believe how close I was to the body of the patron saint of Italy. It’s impossible to describe how wonderful and amazing it was.
After that we had lunch and got back on the bus to travel to our final destination of the day: Santa Maria degl’ Angeli and Portiuncula. It’s a huuuuuuuuuuuuuge church down the hill and was home to the friars in Francis’s time. Inside the Santa Maria church is, in fact, another church.
That’s Portiuncula.
A building inside of a building. It was all so beautiful. The larger church houses so many statues and artworks, and another church. How cool is that? I lit a candle there for my Grandma Rose. There were plenty of places to do that, but I did it here. Also located in this church is the Chapel of the Transitus, which marks the place where Francis died. But he didn’t die so much as he just transitioned into heaven. So they say. This one was a really close second to the Basilica di San Francesco. I really enjoyed it.
Assisi was so cute and beautiful and wonderful. Of course, when I got home I slept for like 4 hours since I was tired and still a little sick. Nevertheless, Mary and I decided that since we had Saturday and Sunday left we would take another trip the next day.
Our choice (mostly mine) was Gubbio. It’s a little medieval town about an hour northish of Perugia.
First of all, the bus schedule is super confusing. Trains and planes I can do. The buses here are weird. And trying to find a website on the buses is hard. Finding one that tells you anything in English is even harder. Nevertheless, we figured it out (with the help of some other travelers and the ticket seller). Then there was the bus ride. I don’t normally get motion sickness, but this topsy-turvy, twisty, winding route left my stomach in knots. I didn’t get sick but it was quite unsettling.
Gubbio is confusing. The signs point in one direction and suddenly when you try and follow them you end up a kilometer outside of the city. That really happened. Everything was really pretty, but it was a lot of walking (as if that’s any different than usual…) aimlessly and trying to follow the signs. There was a Basilica di San Francesco here too, but while it was huuuuuge too it was not as impressive as the one in Assisi.
Gubbio also has its own Francis experience. If you’re interested, look up the wolf of Gubbio and Saint Francis. It’s a cute little story and there’s a statue of Francis with the wolf. There are also all sorts of figurines of Francis with the wolf.
There were the ruins of a Roman amphitheater that were really cool and all of the buildings and such are really cool. Of course, all of this novelty wears off within a few hours when you’re hungry and you happen to be in a town where just about EVERYTHING follows the pausa and isn’t open when you’re starving. Mary and I finally found a little shop that was open and then we found some weird vending machines… one of which didn’t work. There was also a microwave with the vending machine, which is more than there is in our apartment. Jussayin.
The best part of the trip, and the part that made Gubbio worth the trip, was the experience of the birdcage and the mountain. There’s this strange lift that legitimately looks like a birdcage. It’s like a ski lift where it doesn’t stop, but it’s a bit different in that you stand and wait for the cage and then RUN AND JUMP INTO IT. They’re not that big either. Mary and I were certain that we were going to fall and die. We didn’t.
The ride up left us in awe. First of all, we saw that we had walked pretty far from the center of town that we had to get back to. Second, the view was spectacular. Snow covered mountains, ruins, the countryside, the town, some hang gliders, more snow and just a breathtaking panorama of the surrounding area.
“We just rode a birdcage up a mountain. This is seriously our lives right now.”
At the top of the mountain there was a neat little restaurant and the church of San Ubaldo, the patron saint of Gubbio. I have no idea why his church is on top of a mountain, but it was very pretty. I think when I first saw the church when we were at the bottom of Gubbio I said, “I hope we don’t have to go all the way up there to get to the church of San Ubaldo.” Wow was I wrong. I’m glad we had to go all the way up there.
So all in all, Gubbio was worth the trip, but we only stayed for 4 hours. I don’t think I would have like to stay much longer than that. I’m glad we went though. How many people get to ride in a cage up to the top of a mountain in Italy? Amazing.
I’m feeling a lot better, I got to chat with Ronnie, Lauren, and Katrina, and I had a great weekend of awesome experiences and amazing times. I can’t believe that I’ve been here for a month. So much has happened but there’s so much left to do! Gotta start making plans for next weekend!
Ciao for now!
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