Day 22: Assisi
Another
problem with writing a diary whilst on holiday is how easy it is
to drop into the language of guidebooks. Towns are always "perched"
on slopes, hills are "rolling", streets have a "quaint
charm" and the views are "stunning".
In the morning then, I explored the town of Assisi, attractively perched above the Umbrian plains in an area of rolling hills. The narrow, steep streets had a quaint charm and the view from the castle at the top was... stunning.
There, I've done it.
All roads lead...
All roads in Assisi lead to the Basilica San Francesco. From the outside, the cathedral is nothing special, a complete contrast to the interior. Every inch of wall space was covered by colourful frescos.
... to the Basilica
One of the advantages of religious services (cue boos from Richard and Andy) is how easy they are to follow in a foreign language - in this case, Latin. Going to Mass in the world's most famous cathedrals is definitely more entertaining!
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After exploring the cathedral I climbed up to the castle then back down to the main square for the first of many ice-creams.
I met up with Richard and Andy, Richard bought a €10 ice-cream (just imagine).
On good terms for once
In the evening we went to a pizzeria for our last chance at Italian dining - in my case proscioutto e melone, pizza alla schiava and vino bianco - it sounds so much nicer in Italian.
Day 23: Assisi > Perugia > Florence > Milan >
Another long walk with our seemingly heavier and heavier bags brought us to Assisi station again. I played an elaborate game of Pictionary with the woman in the ticket office to book our tickets for tonight's sleeper, then we were off on our way to Florence.
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The way the train time panned out gave
us five hours in Florence - five pretty hectic hours.
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