On this day, we would head to Gubbio - self-proclaimed as the Most Beautiful Medieval Town, but the main attraction for us is the unique mode of transportation to the top of a nearby mountain.
So first a good breakfast at the farmhouse....
Gubbio is about an hour away but of course we look for the twistiest way to get there....
and we find it....
(photo courtesy Google Streetview)
We stop for traditional Italian coffee and pastry at this "bar" in a small town called Pietralunga....the bar was open when we were there...
(photo courtesy Google Streetview)
traditional means a little of very strong black coffee....very enjoyable...
Pietralunga has a fortress dating back to the Lombards, in the 8th century..with parts of it still visible...
In particular, the "Rocca" which unfortunately was under repair and covered when we were there...
(photo courtesy of Trip Advisor)
Except for the remains of these arches..
We enjoyed walking through the narrow streets and stairways before returning to our Fiat 500 and back on the road to Gubbio...
St Mary's Church, which has also been there since the 7th century but the facade was rebuilt in the early 20th century....
the bell tower...but this one's only from the 1930s...
the clock tower palace with a well in the centre of the piazza in front of it...
St. Mary's steps, but that's not St Mary...
We start to climb higher into the Apennines and get a look back at Pietralunga...
and a good use of my zoom lens camera...
In Gubbio, we discover that the church in Torcello that was built in 639AD would not be the oldest structure we would see on this trip. The Teatro Romano in Gubbio was built during the reign of Augustus, 20BC! Almost 700 years older than Santa Maria Assunta in Torcello. It was not an amphitheater, so no gladiators or races or executions, just plays, orations, and similar events.
Speaking of executions, it's time to board the birdcage...Basilica Sant' Ubaldo is at the top of Monte Ingino...
yep, it's a birdcage allright...
so let's get on!
and go for a ride...
with a great view of Gubbio...the Teatro Roma on the right...
and after an enjoyable patio lunch here, we head back down into town...
some hanging on for dear life it seems...
it is a steep ride....but so unique, we've been on dozens of chairlifts, gondolas, t-bars, rope tows, but a birdcage is certainly a first!
a look back up to the Basilica Sant' Ubaldo...
Time to walk....
to climb..
and climb some more....
but then we notice...that doorway under the stairs...."ascensori pubblici"...an elevator!
which takes us to the Piazza Grande and the Palazzo dei Consoli...constructed in the 1330s...
to enjoy the view...
and as the sun begins to set...
time to head back down....
olive tree to the right...
through the tabacco fields...
and after a wonderful day in Umbria, we return to the um, welcoming road back to the farmhouse...
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