As soon as we drove in to Assisi Rosie knew it was a special place, it cascades down its hill and looks so inviting. Church towers, spires and domes pop up from everywhere above the tiled rooftops. The sun even came out from behind the clouds and shone warmly down on us…The Operator hopped out of the car in front of the hotel, stretched his legs….and a bird immediately flew overhead…. and shat on him…it was a sign and a blessing straight away from animal loving St Francis that we were welcome in his town. Rosie says we, because she got a little of the cross blessing splatter as well….such luck!
We were blessed with a beautiful room as well, overlooking the valley below in the Giotto Hotel.
These next couple of pictures with my text are just random shots on the way up the street, it really is a beautiful town.
Real people live and work here even though the town has been deemed a UNESCO World Heritage site, pride is taken in the presentation of the town and there is a bloom competition held every June by the residents….seeing as there is not alot of garden space the hanging gardens on the walls of the houses and around doorways are just delightful.
Rosie and The Operator are wandering up to the main square, left and below, we will refortify ourselves with lunch. We found a Tavernna with a nice balcony overlooking the square.
Rosie will cross reference our guidebook and define the tour for the afternoon, then The Operator will map out the route and guide us there while Rosie reads out the points of interest on the way. This is pretty much how we roll. Lunch I may say was delicious….Umbria is famous for the algae that grows on the roots of oak trees, it’s pungent, aroma is scented by pigs in harness that sniff out the delicacy below the ground, and, these guys grate it on everything….yes, on the platter is scrambled egg with grated truffles….divine, it is the only way Rosie will eat scrambled eggs now, says she.
We are still chugging up the steep streets, our theory is to walk to the highest point and work our way down…especially on a full stomach.
This town has alot of Roman architecture and the influence it has is still apparent, this is the site of an old Roman amphitheater, used for games, fighting and plays…you can see the circle which is the old wall of the theater built in the 1st century AD, the Roman stones have been absorbed into the medieval architecture of the houses, which even have a curve in them, the houses date back to 13th century.
There is a Roman laundry above, round the back of the houses, a communal tub where the woman would gather to wash clothes…. amazing eh.
Stepping just outside the city gate is a great view of the Umbrian countryside, positioned smack bang in the middle of Italy it is often called ‘the green heart of Italy’ as it is the only Italian region that is land locked.
On the hill is Roccia Maggiore (big fortress) used in times of attack to protect the townsfolk who gathered inside the fortress walls. The views from the top are majestic….and the walk to it treacherous.
This is the Cathedral of San Rufino,….he doesn’t get much of a look in with St Francis around, but when you are sitting in the ‘Millionaire Hotseat’ this is the trick question….’who is the patron saint of Assisi?’ answer, Saint Rufino, he was the first Bishop of Assisi who was martyred and buried here in the 3rd century AD.
The church is very simple inside and (above) is the baptismal font where St Frances was baptised in 1188….traditionally local babies are still baptised in this font today…..very cool.
Underneath the church are Roman ruins and to the left of the entry door there is an exposed arch and huge pool, this was the emergency Roman water supply for the town when it was under siege. The way this is cut and looks is amazing, even down to the channel the water runs into the pool from.
Next church is the Basilica of St Clare, she lived around the same time as St Francis and was influenced by his teachings, she founded a Convent which was later called The Order of the Poor Clares.
The church is simple and in line with her non materialistic lifestyle of contemplation. This church was once full of frescoes inside depicting her life done by famous painters of the day….in the 1600s the wall were whitewashed white….as they are today.
There are many arched gateways in this town, all at certain times during the towns life were the main city gates, as the city grew it expanded out in as much of a circle as it could being built on a hilltop to make room for the growing town, it is interesting to see how much the town did grow during ancient times.
Walking through these streets there are little shops on either side selling religious artifacts, carved items from olive wood, Christmas manger scenes, it was believed that St Francis was the first to make and set up the nativity scene for the locals of the day to personalise the story of Christmas for the common folk.
The square is compact and beautiful all the steep roads in Assisi converge into this nice flat area to give you a breather, there are always plenty of people sitting eating ice cream, having coffees or chatting away. A beautiful clear fountain trickles away at one end and just adds to the dreaminess of the spot. This is where Rosie and The Operator started our journey in Assisi with lunch. Ahead you can see the six fluted Ionic columns of the Temple of Minerva which marks the start of the Piazza del Commune (Square of the People)
The Temple of Minerva is a Roman temple and was built in the 1st century AD…check out how worn and chewed away over time the pillars are. Inside the church has had a make over many times in its life, the last was in 1600 to a very frilly interior. Up the front of the alter is the original Roman floor, still in tact with its drainage channels for animal blood offerings…..no photos please.
We have saved the saintly pilgrimage for last….we are off to the Basilica of St Francis….but first who was the man who became the saint.
St Francis is the patron saint of Italy…born in the 12th century to wealthy merchant parents, Francis the man, enjoyed a life of idleness, excess and debauchery, his vanity saw himself as a knight, travelling the regions and becoming a hero.
Within a couple of weeks of his first war he was captured, and because of his new armor, well bred horse and wealthy travel accompaniments he was ransomed back to his parents instead of being executed. The ransom details took a year to negotiate, during this time Francis was living in a squalid underground prison, supposedly having visions from God.
Upon his release he renounced his past life of wealth and opted to wear a simple hassock, sleep rough, beg for food and preach the true word of God in everyday language. He was never ordained a priest and denounced the institution of the church as it was for being too materialistic, he was going back to basics, just like Jesus.
The common folk loved it, he soon had many followers, and preached far and wide. He died in 1228 at age 44 and two years later was made a saint. He founded the Franciscan order of like minded preachers who to this day still wear the simple hassock robe, tied at the waist with rope, a rope that has three knots in it representing, patience, chastity and obedience. It was these monks that travelled to the Americas and established the city of….San Francisco.
Even in his day St Francis was a big deal….he was made a saint in 1228 two years after his death, the same date that these foundations were laid for this basilica to him….it took 600 years for the basilica to be built….during that time his body was hidden away….cause hey, every town wants a body of a saint as its centerpiece, this body gave the town its wealth and made it into an enormous pilgrimage centre, Assisi didn’t want him stolen. But after 600 years of construction, the exact location of St Francis’ hidden tomb was forgotten…when the tomb was to be opened to the public in 1818…it took over a month to locate the body….go on, makes you wonder doesn’t it….
The colonnaded area in the square in front of the church were quarters where the monks stayed for 6 month sabbaticals in the 15th century. Every single pilgrim coming to pray or visit this church since the death of St Francis has passed this way. As we were walking towards the Basilica, you wouldn’t believe it, The Operator was shat on again….twice in two days and Rosie wouldn’t say there was an abundance of pigeons around…The Operator must be treading the right path….although he is still a doubter at this stage.
Inside the church you enter into the area leading to the tomb of St Francis…no photos please, he is in a plain stone box behind the alter. The streaming line of people is constantly shuffling up to the alter, circling around behind and going out the door. The silence is reverent and there is a praying area chock full of people kneeling in silence with heads bowed. The marble floor is so smooth and shiny you can tell it is ancient from the worn patina of the slowly moving faithful.
The Lower Basilica is just a huge vaulted windowless cavern, covered floor to ceiling in faded frescoes from the 14th century. It looks so magnificent and somber.
All of the colour paintings depict the stories/myths/fables/teachings from St Francis’ life. In the next room are the holy Relics from his life…no photos allowed Rosie….the chalice and plate that St Francis used to give communion with, his patched cassock and slippers he died in, the cloth used to wipe St Francis forehead on his deathbed….a prayer written in St Francis own handwriting to a friend and signed by him….and then the original Papal document signed and dated 1223 legitimising the Franciscan order as a holy order and assuring his followers that they would not be put to death through a heresy charge, the Papal seals on that are awesome….Rosie was certainly impressed by these 900 year old items.
There is an upper church as well which has the huge space…..once again it is filled floor to ceiling with beautiful wall paintings by Giotto and his followers painted in 1297-1300. The basilica also has the oldest and most precious stained glass windows in the country from the 13th century. The Operator noticed that under every stained glass window some of the wall paintings has disappeared forever…he has put this down to leaky windows….think he might be right. However, above the main rose window at the end of the church there is alot of painting gone. Apparently in 1997 Assisi had a 5.5 magnitude earthquake that cracked the basilicas roof frescoes into 300,000 fragments. An after shock then brought the fragments crashing down killing 4 people. The basilica was then closed for two years….during that time the fragments were meticulously picked up and pieced back together…..looking at it you wouldnt really know.
Rosie and The Operator have walked the way of the pilgrim in Assisi, Rosie has blessed herself in the holy font of the basilica and The Operator has been shat on directly by a feathered apostle of St Francis.
The Operator has then washed off the blessing in the same wells that dusty pilgrims have used during the ages.
How can you not say our pilgrimage was successful and our future is blessed.
