Storytime: St Francis the Umbrian Rock Star!

Umbria is full of delightful Medieval hill towns that have changed little in hundreds of years.  The often remote mountainside settings of Umbria's villages makes one believe that they have stepped back in time as they wander the streets.  While I was standing on a terrace in one of these quiet towns overlooking the verdant countryside, monastery bells began to softly chime and echo through the mist.  Something stirred inside my soul.  It is easy to see how Umbria's mysterious beauty is the starting point of a Spiritual journey for so many.

Umbrian Countryside in Winter

Ireland is often referred to as the land of "Saints and Scholars" for keeping an intellectual light on during the Dark Ages.  Yet Umbria is a unique region of Italy that is also known as "The Land of Saints."  Umbria has produced so many saints: Saint Benedict founder of the Benedictine Order, Saint Rita, Saint Valentine (yes, like Valentine's Day) St. Claire of Montefalco, the other Saint Claire of Assisi, a few Saint Fortunatus', and so many others.  The MOST famous and beloved Saint of Umbria (and probably all of Italy) is Saint Francis.   On our recent trip to Umbria, we discovered how this Saint is so enmeshed with the day to day life of the Umbrian people; it is impossible to talk about Umbria without mentioning Saint Francis.

Saint Francis was a real rebel and was hugely popular in his own lifetime; as a rock star for his day.  Here's a quick breakdown of St. Francis's life story.  He was born around 1182, and his name was actually Giovanni, not Francis, but his Dad nicknamed him Francesco meaning "little Frenchman."   Francis's Mom was a Noble from Provence, France, and his father was a very wealthy cloth merchant.  Francis enjoyed the easy life of a rich kid; fancy clothes, lots of parties, lots of girls, and he loved hanging out with Troubadours.  That all changed when Francis was 20 years old and joined a military expedition against Perugia, where he was captured and spent a year as a prisoner.  He got very ill during his imprisonment, and Francis re-evaluated his life completely.  Long story short: he ended up rebelling against his wealthy father in front of the Bishop of Assisi and the whole town, stripping naked and throwing his fancy clothes in his father's face. Francis renounced his father (and his hefty inheritance) and went to go live in a nearby cave in the forest above Assisi. Francis preached to the birds and animals for a while; he especially loved the birds and is often pictured with a bird in his hand.

Camino di Francesco 

Saint Francis was a devout nature lover and called animals his brothers and sisters; he is the Catholic patron Saint of animals, ecology and the environment.  He built many hermitages up in the mountains from Assisi to Spoleto.  Today these mountain pathways offer people excellent hiking trails through the Umbrian forests; some tracks being part of the Camino di Francesco, part of a 550 km walking route from Florence to Rome.  The rugged Umbrians are very into hiking, biking, nature, bird-watching and truffle hunting; these are year-round activities in most areas of Umbria.  TIP: If you are interested in walking the Camino di San Francesco, I suggest you start HERE. This website is an excellent resource for the trail. Buon Camino!

I Agree Completely!

Saint Francis was as clever with people as he was with animals and was very devoted to helping the poor.  Taking a vow of poverty, St. Francis started to have a considerable following, especially amongst the very sick and poor Umbrian villagers.  Francis also had retained many wealthy former friends and influential contacts, so he was very well connected.  Francis and some of his disciples went to Rome and were given permission by Pope Innocent III to start a new religious order-even though Francis had never even been ordained as a priest at the time.  Whoa...wait, what?  That never happens!  The Pope could see that Francis was a Rock Star, and the Catholic church needed someone to help turn the church around-the The Church was in serious trouble in the popularity polls at the time.  So the Pope sent Saint Francis and his gang to Egypt and to the Holy Lands to convert some Muslim Sultans to Christianity.  It was basically a martyrdom mission, and even though Francis failed to convert the Sultan al-Kamil, he lived to come home again.  In fact, Francis made such a good impression on the Sultan that when all the other Christians were booted out of the Holy Lands, the Franciscan Monks were allowed to stay behind in Jerusalem and become "Custodians of the Holy Lands" on behalf of the Catholic Church.  This is the time when it was rumoured that the Franciscan monks had brought back Umbria's greatest viticultural treasure: Sagrantino grape vines!  This wine grows in the Montefalco region of Umbria just south of Assisi and has now become a world-renowned Italian wine.  Perhaps a toast is in order to St. Francis and his brothers who wanted decent wine for the Eucharist.  Salute!  To learn more about Sagrantino wine, check out the post from January 2018.

Checking Out The Presepe in San Marino

Assisi is the centre of St. Francis's world and is a charming town, and you can check out our trip to Assisi (back in 2013) in the link.   But it is in the tiny mountainside village of Greccio that lies between Terni, Umbria and Rieti, Lazio that Saint Francis's teachings have touched us all, and you are probably not even aware of it.  In 1220 Francis was passing through this area, teaching, preaching and converting folks like he did.  Christmas was coming, and the village asked Francis to preside over Christmas Mass.  Now, St. Francis was: 1) a fantastic teacher, 2) a Troubadour at heart, and 3) a lover of animals.  He came up with a brilliant teaching tool:  The "Presepio" or nativity scene.  St. Francis asked a wealthy Nobleman (a friend of his from "back in the old Assisi days") to agree to let him use his grotto to set up a live nativity scene.  Saint Francis placed a baby in a simple feed trough (a manger) in between a real ox and donkey and preached his Christmas Mass using the manger as the altar.  This "show, not tell" teaching style of Saint Francis' was wildly popular, and the "Presepe" was born.  TIP: To visit the "Franciscan Bethlehem" in the village of  Greccio and see the nativity play the town puts on every Christmas Eve; click HERE.  Now every city, village or hamlet in Italy has a presepe or sometimes a "Presepe Vivante," which is a live nativity scene with actors, usually on Christmas Eve.  Many of us have a miniature nativity scene that we set up at home every year for Christmas; think of Saint Francis next time you are unwrapping your 3 Wise Men to set up around the little manger.

The Wolf Of Gubbio?

Stories can stretch eons of time.  When travelling through Gubbio on New Year's Eve, we stopped in for lunch in this little trattoria called "Saint Francesco and The Wolf."  The name was odd, so we thought: heck ya, let's go in.  We were seated at a table next to a fresco of Saint Francis and a bunch of concerned monks talking to a wolf, and it looked like something big was going down between them all.  Then I noticed that several tables in the restaurant had guests that brought their dogs in with them!  This was SO COOL!  I asked our server about the fresco, and she told us to go around the corner to the tiny little church of San Francesco della Pace, and it would explain everything to us.  Ooooo, I love a good mystery.  After lunch, we went to the little chapel and there, above the door, was a Latin inscription carved into the stone; it said: "Dedicated to God and Francis, the peace bestower."  There was also a picture of a wolf carved into the rock on the doorway...but what does it all mean?

YOU go talk to that wolf...

Every Rock Star goes on tour, and so did Saint Francis, it seems.  He went all over Umbria into Tuscany and Lazio preaching from 1220 to 1226.  When St. Francis lived in Gubbio for a while, the town was terrorized by a ferocious wolf. This wolf began by eating livestock, then it attacked (and ate) humans in the forest and finally, it was bold enough to enter through the city walls to hunt and kill.  The townsfolk of Gubbio were absolutely freaking out and would not leave the city for any reason.  Francis took pity on them and decided to take matters into his own hands.  He found the wolf advancing on the city gates looking for his next victim/meal.  Francis approached the big wolf and basically said:  "Look, here's the deal.  You can not keep eating all these animals and people anymore.  I know you are starving, so let us strike a deal.  The townspeople will give you food as long as you leave everyone unharmed."  The wolf put his paw in Saint Francis's hand, and a peace deal was achieved.  The wolf followed Francis back up to the piazza, where the Saint announced his pact with the wolf to the public that gathered.  Quite a crowd had congregated by now.  Saint Francis gave an incredible sermon about the dangers of evil lurking about, etc. and ended the speech with everyone agreeing to let the wolf live in the town amongst them.  Many people were converted to Christianity right there on the spot after seeing this miracle, and it makes me wonder: was Francis in Gubbio to tame the wolf or the townspeople?  Was this all a set up by Francis to convert Pagans?  Was this the "Fake News" of the 1200s?  Anyhow, the Wolf of Gubbio went from door to door in town getting fed by the people, and it left everyone unmolested, as promised.


Two years later, when the wolf died (probably from excessive weight gain), the people of Gubbio were so sad they buried the wolf where his cave was supposed to have been.  They then built a church dedicated to "Saint Francis and Peace" over their beloved wolf.
This is a beautiful story; a fairytale, right?  Here's the crazy part:  In 1873, while renovating the church, a large wolf skeleton was unearthed right outside the church wall!  The giant skeleton was reported as looking like it had been there for centuries, and the remains were brought inside the church and buried in the crypt.  I could not believe it! We talked for days about this story and came up with our own conspiracy theories on what happened.  What do you think happened?

When Saint Francis died in 1226, he was put on the expedited list for Sainthood (by his former friend) Pope Gregory the IX and only two years after his death, Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone became Saint Francis of Assisi. The day after Francis was pronounced a Saint, the cornerstone was laid on the beautiful Basilica dedicated to him in the Spiritual capital of Umbria: Assisi.  This gorgeous white Basilica is where Saint Francis's final resting place is now; after the Church lost his bones for a few centuries (but that's a whole other story).


In Umbria, you can walk through the same forests as Saint Francis did, be inspired by listening to the same birdsong as Saint Francis had and fill your heart with the same wonder and beauty as St Francis felt 800 years ago.  The connection with nature and with tradition is ingrained in the Umbrian people as a result of Saint Francis. His teachings and many words of wisdom still ring true over the centuries.  May a visit to this green and mystical corner of Italy inspire you on your own spiritual path!

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The Via Flaminia To Gubbio

The last day of 2017 was here and the streets were a carnival of people who were out and about to party and celebrate the New Year.  There are midway games and a Ferris wheel; street food and mulled wine. Like every other Umbrian town we visited so far, Christmas carols were blasting over the speakers set up in the street adding to the excitement!  Even though it was only lunchtime, everyone and their dog was out either walking the streets or in a restaurant fueling up for a long night of celebration and fireworks over the mountain that has the world's largest Christmas tree.   We are in the Medieval Masterpiece of Gubbio, Umbria!




We left our Airbnb palazzo in Spoleto and said farewell to our dear friend Sara who was taking the two-hour train journey back to Rome.  We have been driving The Via Flaminia which is the ancient Roman road that connects Rome with the Adriatic coast. This is where we were headed to today, with a stop in Gubbio.
The Via Flaminia (called the SS3 road in Umbria) wound its way through the foothills of the Apennine Mountains, passing by snow-capped mountain peaks and towns with Roman beginnings like Nocera Umbra and Gualdo Tadino that just begged to be explored.  We took a detour off the SS3 to go to Gubbio missing taking the Via Flaminia through Mount Cucco Park that is the border between the Umbria and the Marche Regions.  This was the most difficult part of the Via Flaminia for the Romans to build.

Gubbio With It's Never Ending Steps

Approaching Gubbio was a sight to behold!  This town is nestled on the lower slopes of Mount Ingino, with its ominous-looking grey limestone buildings winding up the treed mountainside.  Like Todi in southern Umbria, Gubbio is a Medieval wonderland full of imposing palaces and narrow arched alleyways.  Gubbio was settled on Mount Ingino by the Umbri tribes in the Bronze age and it was called Ikuvium.  Not like the Southern Umbri Tribes, the people of Ikuvium did not resist the Romans conquerors but rather joined forces with them and started to expand their town in the surrounding plains at the foot of the mountain.  When the Barbarian invasions started happening after the fall of the Roman Empire the inhabitants of Ikuvium deserted the old Roman part of town and moved back into the hills to build defensive fortresses.  Traces of the Roman walled city are everywhere and the giant city gate  "Porta Romans" is a Medival tower house built over the ancient Roman gate.

Carnival At Church Of St. Francis

Approaching Gubbio this afternoon, I got a sinking feeling that this would not be a quick and easy visit like we had intended.  The Ferris wheel was going full tilt next to the church of San Francesco, the midway was buzzing with people and the main parking lots were all full!  TIP#1:  when it's a crazy busy holiday, try to follow an Italian who looks like they in a hurry to find parking...they usually find an alternative parking lot a few hundred meters away!  That's what we did. Following a bunch of drivers around the Viale Teatro Romano to the old Roman theatre ruins, there was a public park with plenty of free parking.  This park would be just lovely for a summer's picnic with the Roman ruins nearby and views of Gubbio in front of you.  The Roman theatre here was built in the 1st-century B.C.E from local limestone.  It held 6,000 spectators and is the second-largest surviving theatre in the world.

River Camignano Running Through Gubbio

Walking through the city walls and across a bridge, was the weirdest presepe I have seen yet.   The Italian presepe is a nativity scene and it was invented by Saint Francis of nearby Assisi in 1223.  St. Francis himself lived in Gubbio for a while in 1220 and there are legends about his time here.  Every town in Umbria has a presepe at Christmas and in Gubbio, there is "Via Presepe" or "Nativity Road" in the San Martino neighbourhood, including along the Camignano River that runs through Gubbio.  The presepe is set up by volunteers each year and you can walk along the pedestrian road and learn the story of the birth of Jesus.  I tried to snap a few photos of the riverbank presepe, but I could not get close enough to get good shots and it just looked like weird rags and litter washed up on the shores of the Camignano!  😖

Palazzo dei Consoli

Walking uphill now, following the hoards of people, the streets quickly turned into stairs.  We marched along with all the excited townspeople of Gubbio past the stores selling truffles, ceramics and wines to the gorgeous Piazza Del Popolo.  This is an impressive Piazza that is more like a balcony than a town square, with the fortress-like Palazzo dei Consoli dominating its windswept terrace.  The Palazzo dei Consoli was built in 1332 and now houses a museum with an interesting piece of Umbrian history.  The Iguvine tablets are 7 bronze tablets created in the 2nd-1st-century B.C.E that are the largest surviving text of the Umbrian language!  The museum also has gorgeous 15th-century Gubbio lusterware ceramics.

Gubbio was a BIG deal in the Early Middle Ages; 1000 knights from Gubbio went to fight in the first Holy Crusade and they were the first to penetrate the Church of The Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.  This town just oozes Gothic vibes!   TIP #2: Look for the "Porta dei Morti" on some of the old buildings. The "Doors of the Dead" are said to be part of an Etruscan superstition stating that if the dead were carried out through the regular door, then Death would know its way inside the house.  Therefore, a special door would be needed to carry out the deceased and then Death would be confused and not return.  To learn about another Etruscan death custom check out the Via Cava.  Mysterious...

Fantastic Views From Gubbio's Piazza Del Popolo

For more stunning views you may want to consider going to the end of Via San Gerolamo to the little "funivia" that takes you up Mount Ingino to the Basilica of St. Ubaldo.   The ``Funivia Colle Eletto" is a little lift that takes you up to the top of the mountain in little 2-person baskets.  St. Ubaldo is the patron saint of Gubbio and his body is up there in the Basilica rotting away in a glass case for your viewing pleasure or displeasure. The ride to the top in these little stand cages that look like big Easter baskets.  While the funivia looked like so much fun, we needed to find some lunch (and viewing the mummified corpse of some long-dead guy didn't sound too appetizing).

On The Prowl For Lunch In Gubbio

We wandered up and down the busy main street of Gubbio looking for food, but everywhere we went was packed.  TIP #3: Head a few streets off the main drag to find small traditional restaurants; we use the Maps.Me app to find small local hangouts.  We turned down a quiet side street and went down the street/stairs there was a small skating rink with a few kids goofing around on the ice and a little trattoria/pizzeria called San Francesco and The Wolf.  With an unusual name like this, how could we say no? Click the link to find out more about this story. We went inside and it was packed full of families; parents, grandparents with canes, kids running around, babies in high chairs dogs sitting on the terracotta floor next to kids in highchairs.  Yup.  Remember at the beginning of this post I said everybody and their dog was in a restaurant for lunch in Gubbio?  Well, here in Italy there are many restaurants that allow dogs to dine along with their owners.  I find this absolutely charming!  Dogs are an important member of the family and are much more well-behaved than some of these kids in the restaurant today.  We squeaked in at a little table by the kitchen entrance and had our last meal in Umbria.  White truffles are the star in the cuisine of Gubbio and they are harder to find in restaurants and way more expensive than the black truffle.  We ordered truffle pizza and tagliatelle pasta with black truffle sauce, local beer and the house red wine which was absolutely delicious and surprisingly tasted more like the red wines of Northern Italy.

The late afternoon light was beginning to fade behind the mountains around Gubbio and soon it would be dark enough to light up the world's largest Christmas tree on the slopes of Mount Ingino.  Every year a different Italian celebrity is invited to push the button to light up the tree.  Even the Pope has lit up the beloved Gubbio Tree. This year, Italian astronaut Paolo Nespoli got to push the button and light up the tree from the space station; now that's FAR OUT!    Tonight at midnight there will be a grand firework display high above Mount Ingino and its tree, bringing people from all over the area to Gubbio to watch this exciting spectacle.

Happy 2018 From Gubbio!

As much as I would love to stay and watch the romantic fireworks above Gubbio, we must move onwards now along the Via Flaminia through the mountainous Marche region of Italy while we still have daylight.
We have an important New Years' date with our best friend and her family in Riccione on the Adriatic Coast and I can not wait to see her!

Buon Anno!

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Todi; A Medieval Wonderland!

 

Anticipation was in the air.  Bing Crosby was crooning Christmas carols over the hidden loudspeakers and teenagers were squealing with delight as they skated around the ice rink circling the giant Christmas tree in the Piazza.  The air had the sweet-spicy scent of mulled wine and every now and then a quick whiff of sobering espresso as you passed by a bar.  Families with young children were out strolling and investigating the lifesize "presepe" that was set up under the loggia of the Church.  Nonnas were pulling their shopping carts full of meats and cheeses through the steep cobbled streets getting ready for the upcoming festivities.  The expectation of THE big event was looming in the air; tomorrow was the last day of 2017!

Porta Catena With Todi's Crest

Porta Marzia On Via Roma 

We are in Todi;  a double-peaked, triple-walled medieval hill town overlooking the Tiber river valley in central Umbria.  Todi was established as an Etrurian outpost far back as 800 B.C.E; predating the Romans by 500 years. Inhabited by the Etruscans who called it "Tular" which meant "border", this was the eastern borderlands between the Etruscans and the Umbri and Sabine tribes.  There is a difference with the history of Todi from other towns we have visited in Umbria on this trip. Todi was inhabited by the Etruscans, not by the Umbri tribes which are totally different people. Also, the Romans didn't "conquer" the Etruscan Tuderti like they did with the Umbri tribes, they joined forces with them and Todi became a huge Roman colony.  Later the Romans named the town Tudertum, and Todi was the largest Roman city on the Western Via Flaminia route to Bevagna.
There is still evidence of the city walls built by the Etruscans (the innermost walls), as well as the Roman walls built in 217 B.C.E (the middle set of walls) and the Medieval defence walls built in 1244 (the outer set of walls) that completely enclose the city.

Bird Bombed!

Getting into the "Centro Storico" or the old part of Todi was a nailbiter.  The narrow winding streets climber ever upwards through the ancient arched city gates, leaving little room for pedestrians to slide by.   Parking your car can be tricky in these old hill towns so here's the scoop:  TIP #1: WHITE lines = FREE parking, BLUE lines = PAY parking, YELLOW lines = SPECIAL parking (delivery, taxi or disabled).   We luckily found pay parking on the main street Via Roma. As I was plugging the parking meter, something happened, that happens to me on every trip to Italy.  A pigeon crapped on me.  Yup....allllll down the side of my velvet pants!  This is a reality of Europe.  TIP #2: If you get bombed DON'T PANIC you only call attention to yourself.  If it's in your hair or a fuzzy surface like a sweater LEAVE IT ALONE, let the poop dry and it will crumble off.  I know it sounds gross, but if you try to wipe pigeon poop out of your hair, it will smear everywhere and just make things worse.  I carry disinfectant wipes in my big old "Mom-purse" to clean up messes if the poop hits a jacket, handbag, shoes etc.  Besides, getting crapped on is extremely good luck in Italian culture-like a sign from God.  😖

Cesia Fountain

So clad in my "good luck offering" we trudged uphill on Via Roma through city gates such as Porta Catena (the Medieval Gate) and Porta Marzia (the Etruscan gate). Via Roma turns into Corso Cavour after passing through the Porta Marzia and then you come across an unexpected fountain in a small piazza set up with tables.  Built on the ancient Roman wall, is the Baroque style Cesia Fountain.  Todi was a thriving city since Roman times, by 1290 it had about 40,000 residents and clean water was vital.  Underneath Todi, there are 500 cisterns built by the Romans to support such a huge population and you can tour the underground cisterns and passageways.  Click HERE to find out more on Todi Underground tours.

The Black Death hit Todi in 1348 decimating the city and it became a bleak place to live for 200 years.  The very wealthy Cardinal Cesi revived Todi to a state of splendour in the late 1500's and gave the town a Baroque makeover, like this beautiful fountain with Todi's symbol: the Eagle.  Even today, Todi has under half the population of 1290.

Panorama Of The Umbrian Countryside From Todi's Piazza Garibaldi

Further up the road past all the fancy clothing stores, Corso Cavour starts to flatten out and you come upon Piazza Garibaldi. This is where the ancient Roman Forum started, and the best view of the countryside is from the terrace here. There was an interesting flea market happening here on the day we visited, everything from antiques to hand knitting.

Details of Palazzo Del Capitano

Adjacent to Piazza Garibaldi is the most unbelievable Medieval Piazza in all of Umbria.  Piazza del Popolo (The People's Square) is a Piazza surrounded by statuesque, fortress-like buildings with medieval towers that make you feel like you have stepped through time to the 1200's.  In fact, the buildings on Piazza del Popolo were pretty much all built within 150 years of each other from 1190-1347; give or take a decade.  This is where the Roman forum stood with its temples and basilica. The Duomo at the far end of the Piazza is built over a Roman temple dedicated to Apollo.  Piazza del Popolo is often used as a movie set for films depicting the Middle Ages; but if filmed today, it would be Christmas movie!

Todi's Winter Wonderland

Todi was in full-on Christmas mode.  In the loggia underneath the Palazzo del Popolo and the adjoining Palazzo del Capitano, there is a lifesize Presepe scene created by the museum of archeology that is in the Palace complex.  It was kind of creepy I must admit, but also fascinating at the same time.  The mannequins wore period costumes (like goat pants!) from this region of Umbria and demonstrated how daily work was done at the time of Christ.  The Presepi was very popular with the small children, as their parents and grandparents explained how everything worked.  It gave me a smile to think that this is exactly how St. Francis of nearby Assisi taught his followers about the birth of Jesus.  That Francis was a pretty clever guy.

Chillin' On The Duomo Steps

Looking around this imposing Piazza with its grey-stoned towering Palaces, your eye draws you to the cathedral perched at the opposite end of the square.

Gorgeous Duomo of Todi

This is the highest point in Todi at 1,200 feet.  You can climb the bell tower for 360-degree views of the rolling green countryside and the Tiber river that flows through the valley to Rome.  Erected on top of a Roman temple the Duomo of Todi sits on top of steps that is the perfect spot for hanging out and people watching.  Maybe not on a cold winter evening like today, but this would be a great spot to watch the world go by.  The Duomo was built in the 1100's, took 200 years to complete and went through many renovations due to fires, earthquakes, etc.  The frilly rose window was added during the 1500's when the town was getting its extreme Renaissance makeover.  There are some other great churches in Todi. If you want to see a beautiful Renaissance church, head to Todi's Santa Maria della Consolazione down the hill.  The church is built in a Greek Cross and capped by a gorgeous light green dome!  If you fancy a thirteenth-century Franciscan church, then head on over to St Fortunatus (no relation to St. Fortunatus of Montefalco) which was built on top of the Etruscan acropolis.

The smell of home cooking began wafting out of the restaurants around the Piazza now.  I was a bit bummed out that we couldn't go out for dinner on our last night in Umbria; not with a HUGE smear of pigeon crap down my velvet pants.
There is a lovely white wine from Todi made out Grechetto grapes grown on the slopes of the town.  Grechetto di Todi DOC was made to wash down Todi's specialty dishes like pan caciato which is a small round loaf of bread with walnuts, cheese and raisins.  Or how about a plate of delicious Palomba alla Ghiotta? A  pigeon on a spit slowly roasted over hot coals-never with flames. Hmmmm. Now I understand why that pigeon crapped on me; it was exacting revenge!  I forgive the foul fowl.
We decide on a great cup of espresso instead at Tazza D'oro in Piazza Garibaldi to warm up a bit before heading back to our AirBnB palace in Spoleto.  There is so much to do and see in Todi, including staying in a Castle built by the Romans that has been completely restored. Todi Castle just happens to be for sale (there is a video link) in case you have money burning a hole in your pocket-just sayin'!
For now, day-dreaming is free and the Medieval world of Todi is enough to keep all my Princess fantasies alive and well!

Check out the Christmas scene in Todi:

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Montefalco, Umbria

Perched upon a hill with sweeping vistas across the most beautiful Umbrian wine region, the Medieval town of Montefalco is an Italophile's dream!

Montefalco seems to have it all; a walled hilltop town with 360-degree views, a large Medieval main piazza, churches with venerable art and lots of Enoteca to sample the local wines.  This is not a tourist destination for some, it is a pilgrimage to the best wine town in Umbria.  Montefalco is the origin of Sagrantino di Montefalco; kind of like Montalcino is the origin for Brunello in Tuscany.  If you want to know more about the interesting history of this wine check out my blog post on Sagrantino.  There are 13 DOC wine regions in Umbria and Montefalco is in the Colli Martani region.  There is great wine tourism in this area with the "Strada del Sagrantino" or the Sagrantino Wine Road and plenty of grape and wine festivals each fall.

Montefalco, unlike the other villages in this area of Umbria, was settled first by the Etruscans and then Umbri Tribe people.  Then, of course, the Romans came in and settled the area and probably brought along the Sagrantino grape with them but nobody knows this for certain; it's a mystery.  Bevagna which is 7km away was a huge Roman town that lay on the Via Flaminia road to Rome. Bevagna administrated all the towns in this area and many wealthy Romans built their villas on the mountain, which is Montefalco is today.  Montefalco was called Coccorone until the 13th century but nobody is certain why; another mystery.  Christianity was introduced to Montefalco early in the 4th century by a peasant priest named Saint Fortunatus who preached against the dangers of avarice.  Really?  In Latin "Fortunatus" means "rich, blessed and lucky"- just sayin'.  There is a monastery in St. Fortunatus' name just outside today's city walls.

Montefalco produced a total of six Saints which is a lot for the tiny town, including Saint Clare (1268-1308) known as St. Clare of the Cross whose relics are in Santa Clara church.   By the Early Middle Ages Montefalco had two monasteries, one built by Saint Clare's father and was a completely fortified city.

Moonrise Over Montefalco

The first impression of Montefalco is one of excitement with its giant city walls.  They were built in 1249 when Coccorone changed its name to Montefalco, under its ruler Fredrick the II.  Apparently, Fredrick had peregrine falcons for hunting and incorporated them into his Royal crest which can be seen over the massive city gates. We parked our car alongside the walls and followed the steps up to Montefalco centre.  The views from atop the city ramparts are truly impressive as you can see across the plains to the mountains.  A walk along these ramparts reveals you can see all the way to Assisi, Spello, Trevi, Todi, Bevagna, Perugia and our home in Spoleto!

View From The Walls

Part of The Wall Ramparts

Finding our way to the main Piazza was easy at this time of year, one only needs to follow the river of Christmas lights strung above your head and follow the sound of Christmas carols playing over the loudspeakers of the main Piazza.  Montefalco's Piazza del Commune is one of my personal favourites in Umbria because it feels so open and airy. Surrounded by Medieval era palazzos with grande porticos, the centre of the cobblestoned Piazza has an inlaid falcon crest made of white stone.  It's a beautiful emblem of a graceful and polished town who know that people come here from all around the world to try the famous wines of the region.  Montefalco understands that first impressions are important and they want to present their town to a world-class audience.

Photogenic Piazza Del Commune

Falcon Crest

All the streets of Montefalco radiate from this falcon crest in Piazza Del Commune.  The museum of Montefalco is just a few steps off the main Piazza in the former church of San Francesco. The deconsecrated 14th-century church holds many works of art salvaged from other local churches as well as frescoes by the famous Florentine early Renaissance artist  Benozzo Gozzoli.  Gozzoli is considered one of the best fresco artists of his time and his works of art appear in Venice, Florence and Rome as well as smaller towns in Tuscany and Umbria.  Gozzoli's frescoes of the life cycle of St. Francis rivals those of Giotto in Assisi and his art also appears in the St. Fortunato church just outside Montefalco's city walls.  

Palazzo Comunale In Montefalco

The Town Hall or "Palazzo Comunale" is another beautiful building on the main Piazza del Commune.  This Gothic style Pallazo was built in the 12th century but it was renovated and the portico in front was added on in the 15th century. If you go around to the left side of the building you can see an original Gothic lancet window!

Another very important feature of Montefalco's main Piazza are the various "enotecas" that are scattered amongst the businesses.  Enotecas are literally "wine libraries" and you can go inside and buy wine by the glass, sometimes have some small nibbles and buy some bottles of local wine to take home.  TIP: The tourist information office on Piazza del Commune #17 has maps and lists of the local enotecas and wineries. You can even arrange wine tours here in the summer.  

One Of Montefalco's Many Enoteca

Sagrantino di Montefalco, Sagrantino Secco, Montefalco Rosso (and Rosso Reserva),  Montefalco Bianco are wines whose grapes all grown on the hillside around the town of Montefalco.  You can pick up delicious wines from neighbouring towns like Grechetto di Todi, Grechetto di Spoleto white wines and the newest red obsession of mine; the Torgiano Rosso called Rubesco!  Most enotecas are very helpful with answering your questions about wine and they do carry wines from other regions of Italy as well.  We went to Enoteca Di Benozzi right on the main Piazza and found all the wines we were looking for and at reasonable prices.  Most of the bottles we picked up were around €20 and they bubble wrapped the bottles for us so we could bring them home safely in our suitcases-if we could manage to wait that long before drinking them. 😋

If you are not into wine, then the olive oil from Montefalco is some of the best in Umbria, as is the local honey.  Montefalco is also known for its weaving and pottery and there are some nice shops that have local crafts.  Keep in mind that Mondays are market days and you can pick up some very unique souvenirs to bring home. 

An evening stroll through picturesque Montefalco is delightful. Around every corner you find history and beauty come together in a perfect marriage that personifies the Umbrian hilltown.  Montefalco is known as the balcony of Umbria, and standing on the ramparts at sunset you can certainly see why.  Make sure you have plenty of storage space on your device for your photos because you will not be able to stop clicking away.


Auguri!

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