Assisi

After our Rome trip we departed for Assisi.  It was an unpleasant ride to say the least.  I was almost thrown up on at least once or twice, because a bunch of people caught the flu during the last day in Rome.  Aside from that, the way there was rather scenic. 

Assisi itself was probably the second most beautiful place that I visited over here.  It is perched on a hill with a tremendous view of pretty much everything around it.  Unfortunately it was a very touristy place with lots of cheesy knick-knack shops lining the streets.  Regardless, it was a nice place and it was really cool to be where both St. Francis and St. Clare used to be. 

Most of this part of the trip was down time.  We wandered around Assisi, took pictures, visited Basilica’s, and spent a few hours at St. Francis’s hermitage. 

The Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli.  This is the basilica that was built around the Portiuncula of St. Francis.  It is in a town below Assisi.

The Basilica di Santa Chiara (the Basilica of St. Clare).  This one is actually in Assisi and it houses the remains of St. Clare and a lot of her things.

 

           

Mary and I sitting in an alleyway in Assisi after dark.

 

They grow olive trees in and around Assisi; they are pretty much everywhere.

Mary and an olive tree.

This is St. Francis’s mountainside hermitage.  It was one of the nicest and most peaceful places that I have ever visited. 

A superb use of English.

Sunset in Assisi. 

Here is another shot of the sunset.  The church here is the Basilica of St. Francis.  It was a really nice church, but like most in Italy you can’t take pictures inside.

Fortunately I am finally starting to catch up with the blog, my next post will be about London (aka my favorite big city ever).