Thursday October 22 was a beautiful sunny day with a high of 23C. What a change from rainy Wednesday. Luckily, we had planned our next day trip for Thursday. We were heading to Spello, a very quick 35 minute train ride from Perugia.
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| Arriving at Spello train station. Very quiet- not many people got off the train. |
Spello is widely regarded as one of the prettiest hilltop town in Umbria, known for its narrow medieval stone alleyways overflowing with vibrant potted flowers and plants. Its motto is:
Spello, City of Art and Flowers. It is only about 10 km southeast of Assisi. It is located on the lower southern flank of Monte Subasio. The population is around 8,200.
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| View from near the train station |
We walked up to Piazza Kennedy.
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| Porta Consolare-- primary entrance to the ancient Roman city. There is a medieval tower addition and three funerary statues mounted on brackets taken from the local amphitheatre. There is also an olive tree growing from the top tower which is harvested annually. |
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| Another ancient gate |
The tourist office gave us a map with a suggested route. There is a circular route through the city. It is an easier climb up one side of the city which is what was suggested. Very nice slope and hardly any stairs.
There were flower pots everywhere and it was very peaceful.
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| Starting our way through the town and a number of small piazzas. Flowers everywhere. |
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| Halloween decorations and flowers-- Halloween is big in Italy. |
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| One of the most beautiful towns we have visited in our travels. |
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| A closed church |
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| A former oratory part of a hospital and assistance complex, documented since 1362. |
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| Going uphill |
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| Plants and flowers |
There were a number of shops with local perfumes, and other shops with artisanal gifts. Not too many tacky tourist shops at all. We walked some more and came on a Piazza with a few restaurants. One place had New York Times reviews on the wall, but was fairly pricey. Just up the street was a restaurant full of locals. We decided to stop here for lunch. There were two large trees and a large two-part patio area outside the restaurant.
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Outside of Gusto Bistro
Menu for Bistro
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| We shared a large bowl of delicious lentil soup (an Umbrian favourite). |
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| A glass of wine and ravioli stuffed with pumpkin- one of the specials of the day. |
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| The other half of the patio from where we were sitting |
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| I took this picture on the way back-- the restaurant was closed by then- but is a better photo of the location |
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| Chiesa San Andrea- built around 1025. There was a 1913 Neo-Gothic restoration by local artist Benvenuro Crispoldi that restored colourful painted vaults and details |
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| Beautiful painted vaults |
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| Frescos |
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| Viewing area beside a parking lot as we headed uphill. |
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| Gorgeous day- views were spectacular- Umbria is a beautiful region of Italy. |
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| Beautiful cheese, meat and wine shop |
We stopped at Greco e Garcia where the brightly painted plates caught my eye.
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| Lovely colours and patterns |
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The ceramic and art shop created by artists Francesca Grecco and Aran Garcia---
unfortunately, they had only large plates and bowls. A lovely store. |
We had passed a poster for a Pasta Antifascist dinner on October 24 earlier in our walk. Later we saw the same poster with a Sold Out sign.
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| 20 euro Pasta Antifascist dinner |
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Chiesa San Lorenzo Martire- built around 1120-1127.
Rebuilt and expanded in the late 13th and 16th centuries. |
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| Interior- gilded wooden baldachin designed by Bernini (1631) |
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Frescos
Alonso heading down to where we started our climb up the other side of the town.
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| Frescos on buildings |
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| Plants everywhere |
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| Going down hill was a bit tricky-- I'm looking up from the bottom of this section |
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| View looking down- beautiful hills of Umbria |
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| Flowers everywhere |
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| Photo exhibit of Spello families on one wall. |
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| Ceiling detail under an arch |
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| The views, the plants, the ancient architecture-- all amazing |
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| Another piazza with a playground and a view! |
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| Assisi in the background |
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| Alonso found a cat to pet |
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| Andrea Roggi (Castiglion Fiorentino, Tuscany, 1962), The Tree of Life, 2020. |
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| Tiles had a list of plants and flowers. |
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| Sign reads: Benvenuti a Spello, "città dei Fiori" (Welcome to Spello, city of flowers) |
We headed back to the train station for our quick 35 minute trip back to Perugia. Dinner at the apartment.
What an incredible day. We had a perfect walk through the historic town. One of the most beautiful towns we have visited in our travels. It was also very quiet in late October. HIGHLY recommend a day visit to Spello if you are in the neighbourhood!
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