Our trip to Assisi

(Written on Sunday, June 8, 2015)

We had a nice, relaxed drive to Assisi today.  The city has as much history as it does charm, beauty, and spectacular views of the Italian countryside in Umbria (a region in central Italy well-known for cheeses, wine, and olive oil).  We gawked in amazement as we drove through countless vineyards, olive groves, and fields of poppy flowers almost the entire way from Rome.

Our view during our drive to Assisi.

Somewhere along the way, we stopped at a small family-owned vineyard called Romanelli to enjoy a nice lunch.  The farm was a bit off the beaten path and took a while to find, but was absolutely worth the drive.  It turns out we needed to make a reservation 24 hours in advance to have lunch there (which did not happen since we sort of accidentally found the farm), but fortunately, we were still able to sample some of the wines produced by the family.  We wanted to try some of the family-produced olive oils, too, but no luck there either, since apparently the weather conditions were not optimal for a good olive season (too much rain).  By the way, the reason we needed to provide 24 hour notice for a lunch reservation was that the owner's wife actually picks local produce from the family farm and procures other ingredients from nearby local stores to guarantee a delicious meal for their customers.

Luckily, we still got to pair one of the dessert wines with some of her homemade biscuits, made with love from local Montefalco (the name of the town) wine, wheat, pine nuts, and sugar.  The owner's son, who greeted us when we first arrived at the farm, was incredibly generous with his time considering we just showed up at his doorstep.  Even though we couldn't eat lunch there, we were still grateful we stopped by to sample some local products.  Plus, it was a good excuse for us to buy some wine. :)  Another thing -- the family owned an ADORABLE little terrier/hound mix named Emperor Nero (who, unlike the actual Emperor Nero, was super friendly and not a ferocious animal at all).  He was super happy to see us, greeting us with sweet puppy kisses and hugs (unlike most other dogs we've seen in the city, who are trained not to approach people).  Anti-ferocious Nero followed us out as we drove away from the farm.  He clearly wanted us to stay, which we thought was pretty adorable.  We remarked that he probably had a pretty good life on the farm, since he probably got to run around olive groves and vineyards all day, every day.

Delicious homemade biscuits!

View of the Italian countryside from the Romanelli farms.

Afterwards, we went in search for lunch at the nearby Montefalco Piazza (the only tiny square in a very tiny town).  We had the most amazing food (see below)!  The experience truly reminded us of the importance of fresh ingredients and how they speak for themselves when prepared correctly (no need to overspice foods to compensate for lack of freshness).

View of the Italian countryside from "downtown" Montefalco.

We enjoyed a lovely lunch at L'Alchimista in Montefalco.

This caprese salad had the best olive oil...
it was so good we had to buy a bottle for ourselves!

Joe's lasagna dish.  Lasagna in Italy is more like a rich, layered crepe dish.
This was packed with creamy mushroom filling and cheese.

My dish was homemade gnocchi with a sauce made with local Montefalco wine.

We made it to Assisi mid-afternoon.  Our hotel was a cute little place right off a hillside just outside the gates of Assisi.  Evidently, a sweet little cat named Camilla Teppista (no joke) lived on the hotel grounds, wandering around the terrace gardens and occasionally resting inside the lobby area when she got too hot.

Camilla Teppista comes inside when it's too hot and sunny out by the garden.

After a quick rest at the hotel, we went out for a stroll around the historic town.  Assisi is full of old medieval buildings that are ornately decorated with colorful terrace and balcony gardens.

The entire town has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is a common destination for Christian pilgrims looking to visit the famous Basilica of St. Franchesco (Francis) d'Assisi .  Close by is the Basilica of Santa Chiara (Claire), dedicated to one of the first and most important female saints in Christianity.

Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi.

Basilica of St. Claire.

By the way, we also ran into more random Roman ruins which are the remains of the Temple of Minerva.  Not surprisingly, all Pagan statues and decorations were eventually removed and subsequently, the temple was converted to a Christian church.

Temple of Minerva, which was later converted to a church.

Random old fresco we saw across the street from the Temple of Minerva.

Old fresco juxtaposed with more modern art
(sculpture of a man and a woman intertwined,
forming a beautiful tree).

Per the hotel receptionist's suggestion, we drove down to a nearby town, Santa Maria Degli Angeli to have a nice dinner at a local restaurant.  Oh my gosh, the food was so good that I wanted to cry.  We were both blown away by our entrees, but I especially enjoyed my pasta carbonara, a simple but decadent dish.  The sauce was made with raw egg yolks, minimally fried bacon (so most of the fat still remains), and once mixed with pasta, was topped with fine bread crumbs and truffle shavings.  Side note: truffle shavings directly from the fungus have a much more subtle flavor (and better, in my opinion) than truffle oil.

The restaurant we went to close to Assisi.

Happy and relaxed in Assisi.

Joe's stuffed zucchini cream tortelloni with truffle oil.

Spaghetti carbonara topped with truffle shavings.

We ended the day by catching the UEFA final (Juventus vs. Barcelona).  It was a close game, but Barcelona took the cup!

Tomorrow, we drive to La Spezia, a small town just outside the Cinque Terre area!  We're so excited to continue our adventures in Italy!