Assisi

Che belissima!!!  Rocca Maggiore, a medieval castle

a view of Assisi!

Ciao!  How are you?  I've just returned from the most wonderful evening @ the ballet with an Irish friend I met at school.  We saw La Bayadere, with music by Ludwig Minkus.  It was absolutely amazing!  A perfect evening in Rome & one I will not soon forget.  The show was stunning & the music simply enchanting.  

Here I will share my trip to Assisi last weekend.  I found Perugia to be overrun with people as previously mentioned, so I popped over to Assisi, another gorgeous hill town in Umbria.  It is the birthplace of St. Francisco & Santa Chiara.  I am not a religious person these days but, it is impossible to tour Italy & learn about culture & history without exploring the religious influence.  I find it interesting & in churches you find a lot of wonderful art as well as a sense of peace.  There were many Franciscan monks around town wearing the typical brown tunic with a rope belt.  St. Francis is known to be the patron saint of animals, nature & the environment.  A christian environmentalist, if you will.  

Piazza del duomo.  everything in town is constructed of these white & pinkish bricks, simply gorgeous!

the main piazza

ancient roman temple of Minerva

friendly gatti

charming touches everywhere you look

Basilica of San Francesco complex.  This is a UNESCO world heritage site.    There are two separate cathedrals & St. Francis' tomb is down in the basement.  

upper view of the basilica of San Francesco.  this complex was amazing & the interiors of these churches were awe inspiring.   (no photos allowed)

a view up towards Rocca Maggiore

piazza & church of Santa Chiara

there are many steep alleyways weaving through the small town

these houses are built around an ancient roman ampitheater.  gorgeous!

I thoroughly enjoyed walking around Assisi for the day & then made my way back down to the train station to head for Rome.  I met some lovely Canadian nuns @ the station who had been touring religious sites of Italy.  Then...  I had to cram myself onto a completely full train full of mostly teens heading back to the city.  I had to stand the entire way & with a one hour delay enroute I was glad when the 3.5 hour trip was over.   If nothing else, it was fun to eavesdrop on the teens & listen to some Italian slang.  Despite the crowds the weekend venture was a huge success!

We have been having excellent weather in Rome, sun & unseasonably high temps!  I have completed my elementary level Italian classes with flying colors, having learned past & future tenses as well as l'imperativo!  My teacher has referred me some work, speaking english with a 7 year old boy!  He lived in New York for one year & his parents want him to improve his english.  He is adorable & I hope to meet with him regularly.  It is very different speaking Italian with a kiddo.

As far as the work situ goes... nothing new to report really.  I am planning to go to the US embassy tomorrow to consult with someone & get some advice on my situation.  As time passes I become increasingly concerned about my lack of proper visa.  Despite this stuff...  I continue to enjoy Italia!  There had been some major storms involving serious flooding in some areas.  Cinqueterre in particular, a destination in the Italian Riviera had been devastated by floods & mud.  Also, as you may have seen in the news, P.M. Berlusconi continues to be up to no good in terms of helping out with the Italian budget.  Don't get Italians started talking politics, no one is happy with the current economic crisis.  Did you know Berlusconi is 74 years old?  He looks good for his age.

I am missing out on Halloween this year!  It isn't really celebrated here.  I've always enjoyed carving pumpkins, roasting seeds & of course dressing up & going to parties!  I hope you all had fun this past weekend!!

Italy observes a national religious holiday on Tuesday & I begin my next level or Italian courses on Wednesday.  I really love my teacher Claudia, she makes our class so much fun & I feel over the past few weeks I have learned a ton!

I miss you!  Don't hesitate to email & stay in touch, just because I am writing this blog doesn't mean that I don't want to hear from you personally!!   :)  xx  baci