Umbria, Italy

Right next door, to the east of Tuscany, is the region of Umbria. Although it is less popular with tourists, Umbria has a charm all its own. It has the classic rolling hills, winding country roads and hill towns, but it seems more agricultural. The Lonely Planet describes it as "the green heart of Italy." Apparently, it is a great place to do some hiking. We spent our first night at an agriturismo in a village called San Biagio delle Valle which is about twenty minutes from Perugia. "Torre Colombaia" is actually an organic farm that grows lentils, spelt and other types of grains. We only stayed one night, but we were served a fabulous dinner that ended with some delicious strawberry trifle.
Since we had arrived so early in the day, we had time to do some exploring. We headed to the town of Spello, for no other reason than its description in the guide book. We were not disappointed. It was only a short hike to the town from the parking lot at the bottom of the hill. The streets were narrow and windy. It has a beautiful church in the centre of town called Chiesa di Santa Maria Maggiore. Their pride and joy are some frescoes painted by Pinturicchio. The church has done an excellent job with the lighting to illuminate them in a dramatic fashion. Almost all of the houses had baskets of flowers and pots full of plants around their doorways. It smelled so fragrant. The town was in the process of getting ready for "Corpus Domini." We learned that this celebration takes place 60 days after Easter. The residents make elaborate designs out of fresh flowers and lay them in the streets. While we were there we saw many women sitting outside preparing flowers and leaves. It all looked so interesting. We weren't exactly sure when the event was taking place, but we were sorry that we weren't going to be able to see the final extravaganza. We thought Spello was absolutely charming and definitely worth a visit.
The next day we decided to visit the town of Gubbio. We drove up into the mountains and were treated to some fabulous Umbrian landscapes. Gubbio turned out to be just as delightful as Spello. We arrived to find a lot of people milling around. The Piazza Grande was decorated and roped off, with bleachers on either side of it. It turns out that later in the day, the annual "Palio della Balestra" was taking place. This is an archery competition between Gubbio and its neighbouring towns. Unfortunately, we weren't able to stay for the festivities (again), but we did get to see some of the participants practising. A must-do is to take the funicular to the top of the hill behind the town. You could drive up, but why miss a ride in this crazy contraption? It was the most fun we'd had in a long time. At the top you can go into the Basilica di Sant'Ubaldo where the remains of the saint are encased in glass. We weren't sure how we felt about that, but the church has some amazing stained glass windows that were worth seeing. After a few hours, we reluctantly left Gubbio and made haste to the village of Torricella on the shores of Lago Trasimeno. We had a reservation at a hostel called "Casa sul Lago" and we had to be there before three o'clock or we wouldn't be able to check in until four hours later. Luckily, we made it with a few minutes to spare.
We have stayed in a huge range of accommodation on this trip: hotel, caravan park, side of the road, house, motel, chalet, bed and breakfast, pension, guesthouse, apartment, villa and hostel. While none of them have been horrendous, it is true that "you get what you pay for." We have enjoyed staying in the hostel (which is for people of all ages), because it has allowed us to stay under budget for this portion of the trip. The room is basic, but it is large and it has a private bathroom (two toilets and a shower.) Breakfast is included and we have used the kitchen to cook a light dinner at the end of the day. They also have free WiFii and bicycles, and the other guests are lovely. Half of the people staying here are volunteer students from England or New Zealand. They get room and board and work for five hours per day. It seems like a great way to immerse yourself in the culture and learn Italian.
We have made excursions to Castiglione del Lago (where we explored the medieval fortress), Isola Polvese (an island that is an environmental laboratory) and into the hills at the northern end of the lake. While we have had a small taste of Umbria, there are many towns that we have not yet seen. Assisi, Perugia, Orvieto, and Spoleto to name a few. We have not been able to make this into a beach holiday either. The weather has been inconsistent and the lake is not the best for swimming. Craig is anxious to get back to barefeet and soak in some sun before we head home. We are hoping that our twelve day trip to Sardinia will yield these results.

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