Our trip to the Hermitage of St. Francis (Eremo delle Carceri) was well worth the early drive via taxis (because the road is too narrow and winding for a tour bus) to the retreat on the slope of Mount Subiaso. This is where St. Francis and his friars came to get away from the busyness of life and pray in silence and solitude. The views were stunning, but the fact that we were able to touch the walls of the cell where St. Francis once slept was pretty overwhelming. Here’s a quick visit to the hermitage in photos.

Entering the hermitage. Can you tell I can’t get enough of this St. Francis stuff?

The chapel where St. Francis prayed…

Looking out from the hermitage…

Narrow stairs leading to St. Francis’ cell…

St. Francis slept here in this little cave. I just kept running my hand over the wall, trying to grasp the fact that I was actually touching a wall that St. Francis surely touched as he came and went from this cell.

Exiting the cell. Obviously St. Francis wasn’t a very tall fellow…

Hermitage beauty…

Out on the grounds…Imagine St. Francis looking out at that view and praying his Canticle of Brother Sun and Sister Moon.

After the hermitage, we headed to the Church of San Damiano, where St. Clare and her Sisters lived. We attended Mass while we were there. Here’s the spot where St. Clare died:

Here’s the window where she stood holding the Eucharist, eventually turning back attacking forces.

The flowers mark the spot where St. Clare prayed each day.

Me with my godmother, Aunt Margaret, in the cloister garden at San Damiano.

From there our fearless bus driver, Sergio, managed to drive our giant bus up some very narrow, winding country roads and around hairpin bends — even backing our bus back down a road that was just too small — so that we could eat lunch at the Arnaldo-Caprai winery, an agriturismo that serves only what it grows and makes on its own grounds. Here’s one view:

Our antipasto. Actually this was just one small part of our first course. Not enough room for all those photos.

Our segundi — the best rigatoni I have ever had.

Our favorite of the many wines we tasted.

Back out on the grounds…

Me and my sweetie at the winery.

The best bus driver ever: Sergio.

And…the three musketeers of the pilgrimage: On the left, Melani of Joyful Catholic Journeys — the one who got this whole food-faith pilgrimage rolling two years ago; yours truly; and Isabella, the most amazing tour guide ever. She MADE this pilgrimage. So talented, so hard-working, so funny and knowledgeable. We were truly blessed to have her as our guide from start to finish. To be honest, I can’t imagine going back to Italy with out her.

And finally…a return to our hotel for a last dinner in Assisi. This is taken from the window of our room with a view. Yeah, amazing.

Next up: ROME, one of my favorite places on earth. (Assisi being the other.) If you missed yesterday’s Assisi post, click HERE And if you want to go back to see any of the earlier pilgrimage posts, click the “Travel” or “Pilgrimage” tabs at the top of my blog menu. Ciao for now!

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Our pilgrimage group was lucky enough to spend two days in Assisi — inside the city walls and out in the surrounding area. Although we didn’t originally intend to go back to the center of Assisi the second day, a large group of us just couldn’t stay away. We had to go back for one more dose of what can only be described as heaven on earth. You can feel the sacredness of the place seeping up through the ancient stone streets. You can sense St. Francis all around you. You can spend hours just walking and sitting and watching the world go by and be perfectly content, which is what we did on our visit the second day.

In today’s little photo essay below, I’ll give you shots from inside the city on both days, with one exception. Although it’s outside the city walls, I’ve included our visit to Santa Maria degli Angeli because the Porziuncula should be included with the rest of the holy sites of Assisi and not with the winery tour. So here you’ll see the beautiful city of Assisi: spiritually powerful, physically breathtaking. I can’t wait to go back.

First stop, the San Damiano cross. This is the cross that spoke to Francis, that all-important moment when Jesus told him to “repair my church, which you see is falling into ruin.” Francis, as we know, thought Jesus meant the actual physical church building, but later Francis figured out that he meant the Church as in universal Church. He founded the Franciscan Order, and the work began and continues to this day. So this cross is pretty special. It hangs in the Basilica of Santa Chiara. (And thank you, Dennis, for snapping this photo despite signs that said it was forbidden.)

As we made our way through the city we passed lots of little stalls selling cheese and cured meats. Oh, if only I could have taken samples home…

And lots of roadside shrines. Just gorgeous. This one was my favorite.

And beautiful doors, like this one.

On the street where St. Francis was born, there’s a beautiful church built on the spot, and at the end of the street a little door leading to a shrine that is supposed to be on the exact spot where Francis was born. Here’s the alley…

Here’s the shrine…

Believe it or not, this alley and that shrine are on a regular street where we found an amazing little restaurant, Otello’s. We had a fantastic meal, and our guide later told us — when she asked where we had eaten — that we had found a local gem. We can vouch for that. Here’s my meal of farro e fagioli. Dennis’ pizza is in the background. And local wine, always wine.

Here’s us looking really happy about being at this restaurant in this city. Assisi selfie.

Finally we made our way to the Basilica of St. Francis, the moment I had been waiting for. Okay, one of the moments, but a pretty big one.

Right where we were standing for the photo above was a home with its shutters open. Dennis managed to catch a boy watching us from the half-open shutter.

How about this beautiful alley with a view. There’s actually a restaurant at the end of this with a few seats looking out over Umbria.

Our first day in Assisi also included a visit outside the city walls to St. Mary of the Angels, which is the basilica that is built over the Porziuncula. So it is a church within a church. Here’s the basilica from the outside:

And here’s the inside. The little church is the one where Francis heard Christ talking to him from the cross. (Thank you again, Dennis, for taking a forbidden photo.)

On our second day in the city, we had a chance to relax in the main piazza and just watch the world go by. Make sure you have time to do this when you visit. Here was the view from our table.

Here we are enjoying Birra Chiara, a beer named after our daughter. Okay, named after St. Clare.

Finally it was time to leave. It wasn’t easy to leave. It’s not even easy to leave this post about Assisi, as you can probably tell by the overload of photos.

Here’s one last look back at the city as we depart at dusk.

If you’d like to experience Assisi, join me on my next pilgrimage, Sept. 30-Oct. 11, 2024. Email me for info, or watch this website. Or follow my travel page on Facebook: Italy, A Feast for Body and Soul

If you missed my earlier posts, click on Florence, Siena, and/or Coffee, wine and beer, oh my.

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This is, of course, just a sampling of what we had. Multiply what you see here by 13, the number of days were were traveling. Even on the plane (Alitalia), wine is free and free-flowing. It’s a beautiful thing. So many beverages, so little time.

Vino rosso in Florence with my sweetie.

Siena wine, straight from the source.

Such a pretty cappuccino…in Assisi.

Cappuccino in Assisi, take two. This time with an accidental heart in the foam.

Switching things up. Birra Chiara in Assisi. We HAD to order it; it’s named after our child, for goodness sake.

The look of pure pouring concentration.

It was a warm fall day in Assisi. Beer with a view.

Okay, this one didn’t even make the blog headline. After days and days of wine, we decided to go a totally different route on our last night in Rome at La Botticella, a little Canadian-owned bar in an alley off Piazza Navona. Amaretto and Jack Daniels on the rocks. And, no, that is not our ashtray. Just comes with the territory in Italy.

Truck stop espresso on our way to Pompeii. Real glass cups. So civilized.

Espresso in Naples, as we wait for the boat to Capri. With a side of sfogliatelle. Yum.

White wine in Massa Lubrense to go with our delicious antipasto and seafood main course and glorious view. Perfect.

Assisi posts will go up on Monday and Tuesday, so be sure to come back.

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I loved Siena. It was so much more manageable than Florence — quieter, not as crowded, fewer panhandlers and potential pickpockets, more medieval. I could stay in Siena for a few days and just soak up Italian life from my seat at an outdoor cafe in Piazza del Campo.

Although we had only about four solid hours in the city of Siena itself before heading to the outskirts for lunch at a winery and agriturismo, we packed in a lot of great sightseeing. We started with Mass at the Basilica of San Domenico, which is where St. Catherine’s remains are located. Visiting this basilica was probably one of the most unexpected emotional moments of the entire pilgrimage for me. I was so moved by the experience, not just praying before St. Catherine’s remains, but touching the pillar that she once touched when she prayed, being in this space that was so special to her, this great woman saint and Doctor of the Church. If you are in Florence or Assisi or the general Tuscany region, be sure to set aside at least one day for this beautiful city. Here is a quick photo journey through Siena. (As always, you can click on the photos below to enlarge them.)

The Chapel of St. Catherine inside the Basilica di San Domenico.  We had Mass at the basilica’s main altar.

Basilica San Domenico

The street where St. Catherine lived, just beyond the umbrella on the right.

St. Catherine’s street

A gelato (or two) a day keeps the doctor away.

Gelato in the piazza

The main cathedral in Siena. Stunning.

Siena Duomo

Lunch of wild boar at the Badia a Coltibuono winery in the outskirts of Siena.

Wild boar for lunch

The winery was a former abbey. Breathtaking view, beautiful buildings.

Former abbey

The winery’s garden.

Italian garden

My vintage in the wine cellar.

A very good year.

Next up: Assisi. Stay tuned. (If you missed my post on Florence, you can find that HERE.)

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Our tour guide was moving us along because we needed to go to a different location (and because the law governing tour guides forbids her from speaking about the Duomo because she is not a local Florence guide). And I said, “I’m sorry but I can’t just walk past this, even if we’re coming back later.” This was my first time seeing the Duomo up close and personal. No way was I just walking on by without taking it all in for a moment or two. And taking a photo or two.

Here’s a quick visit to Florence in photos. Enjoy. (You can click on any of the photos below to enlarge them.)

The famous Duomo…

A fountain…

Ponte Vecchio…

Galileo’s tomb in the Basilica of Santa Croce, where we also saw the tombs of Michelangelo, Rossini, and Machiavelli.

Basilica of Santa Croce in the distance…

Michelangelo’s David…

A typical street…

Wine for two…

Next up: Siena. Stay tuned.

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It’s interesting how, even when we’re far from our loved ones and friends, we often find ways to create family right where we are, without blood connections, without a shared history. Whether we’re students living in a college dormitory, workers temporarily assigned to a far-off location, or pilgrims traveling in a strange land, we tend to seek out community, a place where we feel accepted and protected, or at least a little less alone.

When I led a 13-day pilgrimage to Italy recently, our group of 37 pilgrims, one full-time English-speaking Italian tour guide and one Italian-speaking fearless bus driver became a family of sorts. Although we started as strangers – with only a few personal connections among the group – as the days and weeks progressed, you could see signs of family emerging.

As group leader, I was in a parent role of sorts, separated a bit from the rest of the group but at a perfect distance to watch relationships as they developed. I remember the quiet joy I felt one night, about halfway through our pilgrimage, when we sat in a restaurant in a remote part of Rome. We almost didn’t make it to dinner that night since our driver could barely fit our bus through the narrow roads, and then a brief rainstorm scrapped plans to eat dinner outside under a vine-covered portico. I worried about the group’s mood, but a few minutes later, I watched these former strangers gathered around their tables (photo at top), heads bent together, glasses raised in a toast, laughter echoing throughout the rustic Italian dining room. We had become a family.

Of course, family isn’t all sunshine and happiness. There were moments of frustration, like when yours truly was exasperated over another inopportune bathroom break. (I told you I was like a parent. And a sometimes-impatient parent at that!) There were moments of worry, like when a man in our group fell on the cobblestone street just beyond St. Peter’s Basilica and when a few others had to remain back at the hotel because of leg problems or sheer exhaustion. But as with our families back at home, joy and love overcame everything else. By the end of our journey, we knew these new friends would watch out for us, care for us, and make sure no one was left behind or lost.

And that’s really at the heart of the pilgrim journey: community, family. Yes, we go on these journeys – whether overseas or closer to home – to grow in faith, but we also go to meet others who share that faith, people who will walk with us, both literally and figuratively, as we travel our spiritual path.

As we prayed together in Siena, Assisi, Rome, and Salerno, our faith forged a bond, one that will tie us to each other forever because of the powerful experiences we shared — being only a few feet from Pope Francis when he rode by in the popemobile at the papal audience, attending Mass celebrated by Cardinal Dolan at St. Peter’s Basilica early one morning, kneeling before the tomb of St. Clare in Assisi, standing in the tiny cave where St. Francis once prayed.

As we broke bread on our last afternoon in Massa Lubrense, the town where my grandfather was born more than 100 years ago, the sun beat down with a summer-like intensity, the Isle of Capri was so close it seemed as if we might touch it, and the long tables were piled with family style platters of southern Italian specialties. Just before leaving, our tour group witnessed my “reunion” with Pietro DeTurris, a man who may or may not be a long-lost relative. The family tree seems to point to a connection, but the line of ancestry really didn’t matter at that point. There, under a Sorrentine sky, my real family, my pilgrim family, and my ancestral family merged, and I felt whole and at home.

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Although our itinerary is jam packed with lots a great sites — duomos and art, monasteries and agriturismos, wine tastings and cooking class — there’s also plenty of time for wandering around on our own. I have yet to sit down with some guide books for Florence or Capri to see what I might want to do when I have a few free hours. Rome is no problem. Having spent 11 days there four years ago, I’m eager to get back to some of my favorite spots when the walking tours, Masses and museums are done.

I know some of the pilgrims — those who may not have been to Italy before — may be a little nervous as our departure date approaches. To them I can say only one thing, based on my own Italy experience: Let it go. (And if you need to sing that to the tune of the “Frozen” mega-hit, be my guest. In fact, I encourage it.)

Seriously, do not go to Italy and expect United States. It is vastly, wonderfully different, and that’s a good thing. You wouldn’t want to travel all that way for more of the same. The food will be different (and fabulous, every meal). The hotels will be different. The schedules will be different (meaning a shop’s posted hours are totally useless because they will open when they feel like opening). Let go of all your pre-conceived notions. Let go of all your worries about food and clothes and jet lag and throw yourself into Italian life. It could make the difference between a totally glorious and never-to-be-forgotten adventure and a tense, worry-filled trip. You’ve got “only” 13 days. Revel in every single one of them.

When I went to Rome alone four years ago, I couldn’t speak the language, had never been to Italy before, hadn’t traveled out of the country since college, had no one there to meet me at the airport or even share a cab to my hotel, and had 10 days to see everything I wanted to see and still get to my daily (all-day) sessions and lectures at Santa Croce University. I quickly realized I could either stress the entire time or let it all go and take a chance. I opted for the latter, and what a wonderful experience it was. I left a piece of my heart in Roma.

Here’s a story I wrote about that experience, in case you want a taste of what’s ahead. (Read all the way through to the third page on the website for travel tips.) And, if you’re not joining us on the pilgrimage, be sure to follow this blog and our Italy: A Feast for Body and Soul Facebook page (by clicking HERE) to see photos and hear about our adventures — spiritual and otherwise.

Ciao, for now.

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To give you a taste of what I mean, yesterday around dinner time in New York, I was taking a late night stroll with Dennis across Ponte Sant’Angelo (my favorite bridge in Rome, maybe the world), through dark and narrow alleyways that had me nervous, through Piazza Navona (my favorite place in Rome), around the Pantheon and back to his hotel.

At 3 a.m. New York time, I was having breakfast with Dennis at his hotel’s rooftop restaurant with a view of St. Ignatius Church on a  gorgeous sunny day in Rome. By the time I was getting the kids ready for school this morning, I was walking with him through Campo di Fiori, checking out all the Italian goodies in the various stalls and sitting down for a delicious lunch of pasta with eggplant and tomatoes and, of course, a glass of red wine.

Every day has been like that. From start to finish I have traveled with him all over Rome, and Dennis has made a point of visiting all the places he knows I love, sometimes more than once. It takes me back to my trip almost five years ago, and makes me long to go back there with Dennis for real so we can finally experience all these wonderful things together. Maybe someday. 

I’m a lucky girl to have a husband who would interrupt his own Roman holiday again and again to make sure he’s including me at every turn. Thank you, Dennis. Ciao, bello.

Here are a few more shots that will make you want to book a flight to Rome today. (All but the top photo can be enlarged by clicking on them.)

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We will arrive in Rome on Oct. 7, 2014, and head straight for Montecatini Terme, a spa town in the Tuscany region. That will be our base for day trips to Florence and Siena. From there we will move to Assisi for a wonderful two-day visit in this beautiful and special city that was home to Sts. Francis and Clare. Our Assisi stay will also include a lunch and wine tasting at a local agritourismo. We then head to Rome for three nights in a  magnificent hotel that is walking distance from St. Peter’s Basilica but also in the midst of everyday Italian life — near bustling piazzas and restaurants, churches and historical sites. We get to spend three wonderful nights in Rome with a full schedule of all the important things  you won’t want to miss — papal audience, Vatican museum and Sistine Chapel, a walking tour of the main sites — as well as lots of free time for exploring on your own. Finally, we head to the south of Italy, where we will be based in Salerno in a  hotel overlooking the water. The southern portion of our pilgrimage will include visits to Pompeii, Naples, the Amalfi Coast, Sorrento, Massa Lubrense (the town where my grandfather was born), and the Isle of Capri. These last few days will also include some spectacular extras, such as a cooking class and olive oil tasting in Giffoni, a Mass and dinner at a monastery, and a boat ride to the mystical Blue Grotto off Capri.  We will depart from Naples airport on Oct. 19, 2014, full of wonderful food, spiritual sustenance, and a lifetime of memories. As you can tell, I’m a tiny bit excited about this pilgrimage. If you are reading about this trip for the first time today, please click HERE to see the full itinerary and the all-inclusive details.

If you’ve been thinking about this pilgrimage, now is the time to send in your registration. Spots are going fast (I am so happy to say), so don’t delay. If you have questions, feel free to email me through the “Contact” tab on this website, or call Melani at Travel Overtures directly through the information on the online registration form.

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Now maybe you’re thinking, well, you’ll just order cappuccino then, and that’s a great idea, as long as it’s for breakfast or no later than mid-morning. Italians don’t drink cappuccino after that point, only espresso — in terms of coffee. So, when in Rome….or Florence or Naples…remember that cappuccino ordered late in the day will mark you as a tourist, as will a decaf order (caffé hag or decafinato), something that’s not all that common in Italy.

If you really want to drink coffee like an Italian, order it standing at the bar (al banco), which will be much cheaper than a sit-down coffee. You place your order, get a receipt, turn that in to get your coffee order, and then knock it back, like a shot. If it’s morning and you’d like a sweet treat to go with your caffé, I highly recommend cornetto, a lovely croissant-type pastry, sometimes filled with cream. I ate one every single morning with my cappuccino for 11 days straight when I was in Rome. Bellísimo!

We’ll be ordering lots of coffee on our 13-day food-faith pilgrimage of Italy. Want to join us or learn more? Click HERE.

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