Today was our trip to Assisi...FINALLY! The drive there was really long and windy, so I ended up getting motion sick again. What else is new? When we got there, the first place we went was the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli which was pretty cool.
Most of it was pretty standard, but in the middle of it, there is the little chapel where St. Francis would come to pray when he transitioned from being a heathen to a saint. It was really pretty cool. The frescos were kind of amazing, and it's just crazy to think about how long that chapel has been there. I mean, St. Francis was alive in the 1200s. A few feet away from that little chapel was the place where St. Francis died, too. Wow. After that was mass, which I didn't go to.
Charlotte and I visited the monastery instead, which was pretty sweet. St. Francis is the patron saint of animals, so there is one part were there is a statue of St. Francis with a basket and there are live turtle doves in it. So cool! After mass ended, we walked over to a restaurant for lunch. I think we may have experienced our first traditional pranzo! We started with pasta and then had a meat and vegetable course. Not exactly a full pranzo, but the best we've had. The food was decent, but I've kind of been hoping for better. Oh well. I can't complain--I'm in Italy! After lunch we hiked up the hill to the main city of Assisi. That was funny. We were all crazy tired from lack of sleep and a big lunch and then trying to take like a two mile walk uphill. It was really cool to walk into the city though. We went up to the Basilica of St. Francis, which is where St. Francis's remains are. The crypt was an intense thing to see. It was kind of an oddly holy moment for me--not because St. Francis is really important to me or anything, but just that it's so special to so many people that they come from all over the world to see it. It's pretty amazing that something like the crypt of St. Francis could bring people together like that. The rest of the basilica was seriously cool. The frescos were INCREDIBLE. They were just crazy detailed and vibrant. It's amazing to think what it looked liked when it was first finished. Unreal. In the front of the top part of the basilica, there is what is said to be the most realistic interpretation of St. Francis (in fresco). Interesting. We were given free time to walk around and shop after that, so I ended up buying a gift and walking around with Charlotte.
The views from up on the hill were SO amazing. It was like how I pictured Italy being. Olive trees, open fields, cypress trees...so pretty. We got some gelato--always delicious--then started heading back in the direction of the bus. When we got back to Cagli, I stopped in the lab for a little bit then headed home, make some pasta, and conked out. Cassidy went out with Molly for her birthday and when she got back, I was literally asleep in my clothes with all the lights on. Dang. Sleep-in tomorrow because there is no class until 1:30!
Most of it was pretty standard, but in the middle of it, there is the little chapel where St. Francis would come to pray when he transitioned from being a heathen to a saint. It was really pretty cool. The frescos were kind of amazing, and it's just crazy to think about how long that chapel has been there. I mean, St. Francis was alive in the 1200s. A few feet away from that little chapel was the place where St. Francis died, too. Wow. After that was mass, which I didn't go to. 
Charlotte and I visited the monastery instead, which was pretty sweet. St. Francis is the patron saint of animals, so there is one part were there is a statue of St. Francis with a basket and there are live turtle doves in it. So cool! After mass ended, we walked over to a restaurant for lunch. I think we may have experienced our first traditional pranzo! We started with pasta and then had a meat and vegetable course. Not exactly a full pranzo, but the best we've had. The food was decent, but I've kind of been hoping for better. Oh well. I can't complain--I'm in Italy! After lunch we hiked up the hill to the main city of Assisi. That was funny. We were all crazy tired from lack of sleep and a big lunch and then trying to take like a two mile walk uphill. It was really cool to walk into the city though. We went up to the Basilica of St. Francis, which is where St. Francis's remains are. The crypt was an intense thing to see. It was kind of an oddly holy moment for me--not because St. Francis is really important to me or anything, but just that it's so special to so many people that they come from all over the world to see it. It's pretty amazing that something like the crypt of St. Francis could bring people together like that. The rest of the basilica was seriously cool. The frescos were INCREDIBLE. They were just crazy detailed and vibrant. It's amazing to think what it looked liked when it was first finished. Unreal. In the front of the top part of the basilica, there is what is said to be the most realistic interpretation of St. Francis (in fresco). Interesting. We were given free time to walk around and shop after that, so I ended up buying a gift and walking around with Charlotte. 
The views from up on the hill were SO amazing. It was like how I pictured Italy being. Olive trees, open fields, cypress trees...so pretty. We got some gelato--always delicious--then started heading back in the direction of the bus. When we got back to Cagli, I stopped in the lab for a little bit then headed home, make some pasta, and conked out. Cassidy went out with Molly for her birthday and when she got back, I was literally asleep in my clothes with all the lights on. Dang. Sleep-in tomorrow because there is no class until 1:30!
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