A Day Trip To Norcia

Norcia is a small town about 40kms from Spoleto.  On Tuesday we caught the local bus for the 50 minute bus ride through the Umbrian countryside.  At 6 euros each it was a bargain.  We decided to catch the morning bus, have lunch in Norcia and catch the early afternoon bus back to Spoleto.  It was a beautiful sunny spring day, so was perfect for our outing.  We drove through olive groves and vineyards as we left Spoleto and passed by market gardens and many hilltop towns on our way to Norcia.  In parts, the roadside was covered with red poppy flowers. 

Norcia is known for it's salami, pulses and white truffles.  It's in a valley so it is quite different to the hilltop towns we've seen - and it's flat to walk around.  There are many shops selling pasta, polenta, truffles, salamis and cheeses.  Many salami shops are decorated with boar's heads.  We bought some of the specialties and will try out some culinary delights over the next couple of weeks. We also saw a number of metalworking shops selling household goods, copper and iron cooking utensils and wrought iron work.

The main piazza and basilica are named after St Benedicto who was born in Norcia.  The crypt in the Basilica San Benedicto marks the birthplace of St Benedicto and his sister.








There is also a good museum with many artefacts from pre-Roman Etruscan times and the Roman era.  Norcia was settled around the 4th century BC and in Roman times it was known as Nursia.  The museum has a good display of Etruscan household goods and also grave goods from locally excavated ancient graves.  There is a display relating to the Roman Vespasian and his family with fresco and statues.  This statue is a combination of a 1st century youth's body and a 2nd century woman's head and is thought to honour Vespasian's mother.  The museum is built on the site of a Roman house which is still being excavated.

A children's festival had been taking place in the Town Hall in the morning and there were lots of costumes.  This little girl was very proud of the certificate she received.

We had lunch at one of the many restaurants before heading back to the bus stop just outside the city wall for our ride back to Spoleto.

Something for Everyone in Spoleto

There's something for everyone in Spoleto.  This weekend we'll be treated to more festivals and we're expecting crowds to descend on this usually quiet town.  On Saturday night the shops and bars will be open all night and we will be treated to marching bands and parades.  There will be celebrations to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the National Unification of Italy and the 65th anniversary of he Italian Republic.  There's a big World Wine Show on and we're planning to buy our wine glass and taste some of the many wines which will be on offer.  A Food Festival is incorporated into the Wine Festival so I think we are in for a good time over the next week.  For those interested in cats there's an International Cat Show.  Not sure that we'll make that one - watch this space to read about our activities.  Looks like they are catering for both Greg and Sharon here.....

Of course if festivals aren't your thing, there's always one of the many coffee shops.  The Cafe degli Artisti in Piazza Mercato takes an artistic approach to their cappuccinos.

The scenery around Spoleto is just as good on damp misty days as it is on warm sunny days.  We've had some thunderstorms this week and listen to the thunder rolling around the nearby hills.

Robert went for a walk through the woods this morning and took some photos looking back at Spoleto from another angle.  

Basilica San Gregorio Maggiore

This weekend we have been visiting several of the churches in Spoleto.  The Basilica San Gregorio Maggiore is at one end of Piazza Garibaldi about 5 minutes walk from our apartment. This church was built in the 11th-12th century on the site of an early church and cemetery.  This church has examples of early middle ages sculptures and 15th century frescoes.

After we left the church we indulged in gelato from one of the nearby shops.

Church of Saint Euphemia

The Church of Saint Euphemia (Sant Eufemia) and the Diocesan Museum are located next to the Cathedral in Spoleto.  This church is an example of Romanesque architecture and it houses crosses from the 12th-14th centuries.

The Diocesan Museum has a variety of religious artefacts and many 14th-16th century pairings.  Again we were awed by the painted ceilings.

 

Spoleto Cathedral

The Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta houses some magnificent artworks.  In front of the Carthedral is a large piazza which forms a large stage backed by the church.  The building is predominantly 12th century, incorporating some Roman materials, especially in the bell tower, and the portico was added during the renaissance.  Above the portico is a mosaic of Christ.

To the right of the church is a carved Roman sarcophagus and to the left is a large brass bell dedicated to John the Baptist in 1744.














Once inside the cathedral it's hard to know where to look.  The walls and ceiling are decorated with frescoes and paintings predominantly from the 15th-17th centuries.  There are several chapels which are also heavily decorated.  We both took heaps of photos and it was hard to select just a few to put in this blog.  The cathedral was being prepared for a wedding later in the day.

 One apse was decorated with ornate wood carving with paintings of saints within the wooden panels.  Even the floor was decorated with marble tiles forming many different patterns.  A crypt in the cathedral dates from the 9th century and it is the only surviving part of the original layout of the cathedral.  The cathedral has one of two surviving original letters written by St Francis of Assissi.  The cathedral in nearby Assissi has the other letter.