Assisi the home of a Saint
A city may host several attractions but actually there is a unique reason to visit a place for devoted travelers.
For Assisi, we can say that this is the inspiration we get from the life of Saint Francis.
The city of Assisi, a place of pilgrimage for Christians, is located in the Umbria region of Italy. It is twenty kilometers from Perugia, the capital city of the region, and can be easily reached with a two-hour train ride from Rome. A wonderfully preserved postcard little town built on top of a hill.
The most important place in the city is the Basilica of St. Francisco. We enter through a large courtyard. It consists of two separate basilicas and courtyards; The Basilica at the bottom also hosts the tomb of St. Francisco. The blue of the flag of Assisi -which consists of blue and red -is the color that gives its color to the place. Assisi blue gives relief to ceilings. The frescoes on the walls were designed by famous medieval painters Cimabua and Giotto. On the lower floor are the tomb of Saint Francis and the graves of his companions. The Basilica has a serenity and a different aura. The smaller Basilica above also has frescoes, these are paintings depicting the life of St. Francis and were designed by the Roman painter Pietro Cavallati. There is a square in front of the Basilica at the top and a pleasant garden on the side.
Saint Francisco, who is considered one of the patron saints of Italians, has an interesting life story. The story of a man born as the son of a wealthy merchant who, after a life of prosperity, fun and worldly pleasures until his twenties, suddenly changes of his own accord after the experience of war and illness, and chooses poverty and rejects his paternal inheritance and dedicates himself to the path of Jesus. The Christian sect called the Franciscans is still one of the most respected sects of Christianity today, where St. Francesco and his followers adopted a life of poverty and refused to have anything.
From the basilica, you can continue towards the city, visit Piazza del Commune square, Rocca Maggiore castle, San Rufino Cathedral, Santa Chiara Basilica and many other churches and wander around the beautiful side streets of the city. You can taste Francisco bread, which is similar to Easter buns found in bakeries.
Our advice: when buying your train ticket, buy the bus ticket that will take you from the station to the Basilica. For accommodation, you can choose the city of Perugia and visit Assisi for a day.
