Showing posts with label DAY TRIPS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label DAY TRIPS. Show all posts

November 30, 2009

Assisi



     It is difficult to write about Assist because the town seems to invoke a spiritual reaction - ranging from the the brief to the profound - and is an experience central to the life of Saint Francis and the visiting of the cathedral built in his honor.  A heard a few commentaries on this phenomenon prior to our visit last weekend, not to mention via my Rick Steves podcast on the subject, so I can only add a resounding confirmation that a visit to Assisi is not one that you'll soon forget.  The cathedral frescoes are remarkable; not only for their artistic appearance but also for their ability to visually illustrate the life of the saint in a medium accessible to all.  

October 26, 2009

Castelli Romani: Escape for Popes & Day Trippers


     The Castelli Romani are a group of towns grouped at the bottom of the Alban hills to the south-east of Rome. There are collectively 16 communes which share regional gastromic specialites (I'm referencing the infamous porchetta: spit-roasted pork!) and individual histories, ranging from offering refuge to plague-fleeing Romans, (Frascati) or harboring the luxury ships of Emperor Caligula (Nemi).