WRITING AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY MONIKA CSAPO
If I would have to compare Tuscany and Umbria to dating life I would say that Tuscany is like succesful first dates. Romantic and pink and Umbria is the stage when you dive a bit deeper and everything gets more complex and entangled.
Once the center of the Etruscan civilization Umbria is known nowadays like the "green heart of Italy". Italians like to spend their holidays here because the region offers a mixture of great cuisine, beautiful landscapes and historical cities and small towns.
When I stayed in Umbria I visited Assisi, Spello and Gubbio and spent the rest of the time with getting to know Perugia better. Plus I changed trains twice in Terontola. But basically you can just point your finger on the map and go to any city or village and you will not make a bad choice. Local train and bus connections are frequent and cheap so you can visit even two or three places within a day. For sure in every town there will be a nice main square, churches full of art, nice small cafes and food places besides the local attributes. Thanks to the Etruscan heritage towns and villages are built on hilltops. Therefore when you are in the old town you will be able to enjoy a beautiful view of the surrounding wide plain with other cities built on hilltops emerging in the distance.
What did I visit:
In Assisi I visited the Cathedral. It has very beautiful architecture and there is no entrance fee. I listened to the audio guide while staying there and as someone who likes art I really enjoyed looking around while getting some background info on paintings and frescos.
Assisi is the fourth biggest Catholic pilgrimage site of the world and the place where St. Francis founded the Franciscan order. St. Francis was by the way a real rebel of his age speaking up for simplicity, solidarity with the poor and returning to modesty which was very much disliked and seen as a threat by more elitistic and materialistic church members. He also liked animals a lot and is seen as the patron saint of animals and ecology in Catholic religion. You can get to the old town by a local bus from the train station.
Then I continued my trip to Spello. Spello is most famous for its streets filled with beautiful flower creations and green plants in nice ceramic flower pots. The town was just as beautiful in reality as on the pictures you see on the internet. It is a peaceful little town which is perfect for taking pictures and wandering around.
Then I spent a day in Perugia and made an excursion to Gubbio the next day. Gubbio is built on a small mountain and when I visited there was still a bit of snow. Even though the old town is on a mountain top you have to walk only a little uphill and then you can get for free through elevators and escalators to the main sights. The oldest part of Gubbio is located close to the bus terminal. It is characterized by its typical narrow small streets and dark-grey stone houses. This part of the town has a real medieval feel!
Traveling by train and bus added so much to my trip compared to an organized trip when they bring you directly to places. I could see local people, take the same bus what high school kids took after school going home from Perugia to surrounding villages. I could look at the landscape and just take in everything in a much slower, more free form. I really recommend you to choose this type of travelling when visiting Umbria!
The places what I did not see and would like to see if I go next were Norcia, Foligno, Spoleto and also Lake Trasimeno seemed like a nice place to chill.
What did I visit:
In Assisi I visited the Cathedral. It has very beautiful architecture and there is no entrance fee. I listened to the audio guide while staying there and as someone who likes art I really enjoyed looking around while getting some background info on paintings and frescos.
Assisi is the fourth biggest Catholic pilgrimage site of the world and the place where St. Francis founded the Franciscan order. St. Francis was by the way a real rebel of his age speaking up for simplicity, solidarity with the poor and returning to modesty which was very much disliked and seen as a threat by more elitistic and materialistic church members. He also liked animals a lot and is seen as the patron saint of animals and ecology in Catholic religion. You can get to the old town by a local bus from the train station.
Then I continued my trip to Spello. Spello is most famous for its streets filled with beautiful flower creations and green plants in nice ceramic flower pots. The town was just as beautiful in reality as on the pictures you see on the internet. It is a peaceful little town which is perfect for taking pictures and wandering around.
Then I spent a day in Perugia and made an excursion to Gubbio the next day. Gubbio is built on a small mountain and when I visited there was still a bit of snow. Even though the old town is on a mountain top you have to walk only a little uphill and then you can get for free through elevators and escalators to the main sights. The oldest part of Gubbio is located close to the bus terminal. It is characterized by its typical narrow small streets and dark-grey stone houses. This part of the town has a real medieval feel!
Traveling by train and bus added so much to my trip compared to an organized trip when they bring you directly to places. I could see local people, take the same bus what high school kids took after school going home from Perugia to surrounding villages. I could look at the landscape and just take in everything in a much slower, more free form. I really recommend you to choose this type of travelling when visiting Umbria!
The places what I did not see and would like to see if I go next were Norcia, Foligno, Spoleto and also Lake Trasimeno seemed like a nice place to chill.
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