Day 11 – On our way to Rome with a stop in Assisi

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Day 11 - On our way to Rome with a stop in Assisi

We left Florence for Rome with a short tour and lunch in Assisi which also sits atop a hill within the Umbria region of Italy. Umbria is the only land-locked region of the 20 regions within Italy. I found the Umbria countryside some of the most scenic of the trip so far.

Because our included dinner in Florence was a flop, our TD arranged to provide a free personal guide through the Basilica di San Francesco. Aside from Jesus, no single individual has had such an impact on Catholic and Italian culture. Our guide did an excellent job of linking the vision and message of Francis to that of Italy's birth of the renaissance era. The Basilica at Assisi is really three churches constructed on top of each other. And our guide showed us how the art evolved from that of spiritual symbolism to that of God's creation. The guided tour was excellent. The bottom part of the basilica contains the remains of Francis. This was quite humbling to be in the presence of such a common man who had such a huge impact on the word.

After the tour, we had a quick sandwich within the city at a nice cafe with more nice staff.

After Assisi, we headed to our final destination, Roma!

After we checked into our hotel, we joined the tour for our included tour of Rome. We drove around some of the piazza's before we stopped and started our walking tour. Highlights of our walk were the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, and many important palaces that are now converted to government buildings. Since Bush was visiting the Italian PM and the Pope, there were Italian police all over the place. They were expecting large protests, but we didn't see anything serious.

The Pantheon was very cool. It looked very Roman and very old from the outside. But on the inside, other than being round, I would have thought it was built to be a Duomo instead of a Roman temple of their gods.

We ended our walking tour at Piazza Navona which is shaped just like original Roman stadium design of the 1st century. Now, it is surrounded by buildings, shops and outdoor cafes. We had a very nice dinner with the threat of a downpour. Surprise, we again had gelato after dinner.

We returned to the hotel to get some rest.

EPI Notes:
You might consider asking your TD about getting the guided tour through the Basilica in Assisi. It is not normally included, but I can't see how we would get as much value out of this stop without the guide. He was fantastic.

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Photos

Just outside the basilica exit. PAX
This is the symbol for the high school that Andi attended, and which Kelsey now attends. St. Francis High School. PAX means peace.

Afternoon siesta on the coach
Everyone got accustomed to the afternoon nap on the coach or in our hotel room

The Roberts at Trevi Fountain
Susan and Brandon threw coins in Trevi tradition. Susan's made the fountain, Brandon's just missed hitting someone in the back of the head. He was successful with his second try.

The New Pantheon
This is the new version. The first was destroyed 100 years after construction. The second one has been around for 1900 years.

Inside the Pantheon
Looks like a cathedral.. Oh, it is a cathedral now.

Looking up through the dome of the Pantheon
The hole in the dome was to let out smoke and allow in light.

Pres. Bush really inconvienenced the Italians
Every form of Italian security was out in full force the night Bush arrived in Italy. Every street corner and public square were covered by security.

Not a typical Italian
This street entertainer made his outfit look like he is walking fast and his clothes are blowing around. In reality, he was totally still and would hold this pose for quit awhile. Much better than those fake statues.