Assisi

A few weeks ago (yeah, I've been busy), we went for our day field trip to Assisi. For those who don't know, Assisi is famous for being the hometown of St. Francis, the saint that founded the Franciscan Order of the Catholic church and all the monks and nuns who follow it. So, naturally, the main attraction of the city is the St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral. The unique aspect of this church was that it is really two in one. There is the original medieval / gothic church on the bottom, and then later the top more elaborate renaissance church was added to honor the saint. Another interesting point was the use of local stone that gives the building a peachy rose-colored tint to it, definitely not a common color.
These are the intricate archways into the lower church. Pictures were not allowed inside, but they probably wouldn't have turned out anyway because there was very little light. It had low vaulted ceilings completely frescoed and lined with dark detailed stain glass windows, and was still filled with rows and rows of pews (many of the churches we visit have taken out the majority of the pews to allow for more visitors).

We were allowed to take pictures of the two-story courtyard in the back that connects the two levels of church.
This is the front of the upper church. It was very different than the lower church (though still no photos inside). It had really high ceilings and large rose windows (the circular ones). It also had a few stain glass, but much smaller and subtler, and the frescoes were much larger and easier to read, telling stories of St. Francis's life and ministry. One other interesting tidbit about the cathedral, about ten years ago there was a bad earthquake that caused half of the roof to cave in and damage many of the frescoes. In only a couple years, they were able to repair the roof and restore nearly every fresco back to its original state. They did such a good job that had they not mentioned it, I don't think I would have never been able to tell.
... the long courtyard at the entrance of the church, lined by arcades on either side.
Walking through Assis (and practically anywhere in Italy for that matter), it's very common to see potted flowers and ivy plants growing on people's windows and walls. It's so pretty and adds so much color to places that otherwise would be devoid of plantlife admist all the stone and brick buildings and roads. ... *sigh* doesn't it just make you want to move here?
After the Cathedral, we zipped through this underground museum of these ancient ruins that were found winding their way all underneath the city. I wish we could have had more time to explore the vaults and artifacts that were found than the ten minutes we were given. I barely had a chance to snap a few pictures...

...these are the only ones I got. ...not too bad, though.

Afterwards, we had the rest of the day off, though we were strongly encouraged to stop at the second biggest church in the city (so of course, we did), the church of Santa Chiara (I also learned that the english equivalent of Chiara is Clare, who knew?). St. Clare was a devout follower of St. Francis, left her high rank in society and all her possessions to become a Franciscan nun. They house her body in the lower level of the church (which I still find to be a bit creepy when they leave it visible), surrounded by paintings of her life. The church itself has its own unique history. It was also covered floor to ceiling in frescoes, originally, but after the black plague, religious leaders white-washed all of the walls believing they were cleansing the church from all the illness. Only in recent centuries have historians gone back and uncovered the old frescoes, still mostly intact, underneath the layer of white wash plaster. So, walking into the church, most of the walls are still white, with only the alter completely uncovered and a few other parts of walls. But, I actually like the white better. It acts as a much better backdrop for the beautiful stained glass windows, lets the light stream through and pour the colors all across the walls. Sometimes I wonder why the bother using stained glass in these medieval buildings because the detailed dark frescoes always overpower the windows, so you often pass by them. So, I really liked sitting in this church, despite the plain white walls that my classmates didn't seem to like.
The rest of the time here in Assisi, my friends and I spent at the top of the hill at the fortress. ...of course, they didn't want to pay the four euros to explore the inside - they'd much rather just sit on the wall on the outside for free. *sigh* whatever.
... it had a very dominating presense as you walked up towards it...

... some of the watch towers...

... the wall some people climbed on (and fell off... luckily this one was only about 8 feet tall. the other wall that people were sitting on was probably around 15 feet high. ...oh, they were okay, btw).
... a view of the town through one of the shoot out holes of the wall.
One of my friends made this panaromic picture of the view of Assisi and the extending valley that we saw sitting on the fortification wall. ... pretty spectacular, no?