Assisi

The morning of Day 13, June 19, was a Sunday. This made the train schedules less frequent than we would have preferred. The plan was to have the day in Assisi on the way from Rome to Florence, and it ended up working out. We took a train to Foligno, where we had enough time to hike into town with our bags for a bite to eat and a bathroom. Then we were off to the town of Assisi, where we took a short bus from the train station.



Since it was a Sunday, the train station locker rooms weren't open, so we were carrying our packs. On a whim, we asked one of the young workers at a cafe near the town bus stop if there was any chance we could leave our bags there for a few hours. We had planned on how much we were willing to offer for compensation, but it didn't even get to that. With one look and an of-course head nod, he put our bags in their storage cellar. A literal big weight off of our backs. Goes to show: never hurts to ask.





Assisi was the birthplace of St. Francis, founder of the Franciscan order, and the town and surrounding area exude his influence.



The Basilica di San Francesco is relatively modest, compared to what you would find in larger cities, but very pretty. It is separated into upper and lower parts, and beneath it is the Crypt of St. Francis, which I found nicely lit and very meditative. No pictures, and the pictures online don't do it justice.

The town itself is filled with old buildings and windy roads.





We climbed up to the main castle, Rocca Maggiore, which served to protect/subjugate the town throughout the ages. Periodically, the town would rise up and destroy the castle, the ruling lord would promise improvements and not to rebuild, and a few decades later the castle would be rebuilt.















The surrounding Umbrian countryside is beautiful. It was a calm and peaceful day.





I couldn't help but think of my Capri friend when we ran into this pack of guys. They were very busy taking pictures of each other in completely serious model poses, looking at the results, and then making suggestions for the next picture on hand placement, sunglasses, etc.



Bros will be bros.

After some time at the castle and wandering around the city, it was time to hop on a bus back to the train station to make sure we didn't miss the next leg of our journey.



Back at the cafe, we picked up our bags and bought a few snacks as thanks.