Vietri sul Mare

Today’s first stop was Assisi, the birthplace of St. Francis, who founded the Franciscan religious order in the town in 1208, and St. Clare, the founder of the Poor Sisters, which later became the Order of Poor Clares after her death. St. Francis shares honours with St. Catherine of Siena as the patron saint of Italy. He is also the patron saint of animals and is remembered as a lover of nature (his preaching to an audience of birds is one of the legends of his life). On November 29, 1979, Pope John Paul II declared Saint Francis the Patron Saint of Ecology.

We met up with our guide, Francesca and did a walking tour of the town. Today, May 1st, is a national holiday in Italy when Italians commemorate the labor union movement's social and economic achievements on Labor Day. The town was festooned with red and blue flags representing the two teams of Assisi residents who compete in friendly games on Labour Day. We saw an area being set up for a cross bow competition to be held in the afternoon - alas, after our departure.

UNESCO collectively designated the Franciscan structures of Assisi as a World Heritage Site in 2000 - we could see why - there are churches everywhere. We drank in the beautiful views and then toured the Basilica of Santa Chiara (St. Clare) with its massive lateral buttresses, rose window, and simple Gothic interior, begun in 1257. It contains the tomb of the St. Clare. This was especially moving for me as my middle name is Clare.

Francesca told us how St. Francis wanted to be buried with the other sinners (the town criminals) and to be forgotten. Well, he got his first wish, but NOT his second wish. The entire town is a homage to him and a popular pilgrimage spot. Stores sell a huge range of Francis-related products - statues, carvings, ceramics, key chains, t-shirts…..the list goes on and on.

We wound our way through the narrow streets to the Basilica of San Francesco d'Assisi (St. Francis). This is actually two churches. The smaller, lower one contains the tomb of St. Francis. When the small church could no longer handle the massive numbers of pilgrims, a huge church was built up above it. The walls and ceilings are adorned with fabulous frescoes done by the Italian artist, Giotto. They depict scenes from the life of St. Francis, including his preaching to the birds. The colours are still vibrant and hundreds and hundreds of years. The mosaic patterns on the floor and on the ceiling and on the pillars made this quilt lady’s fingers itch to take pictures - but, alas, photos are not allowed.

We had a bit of free time. We got some lunch in a lovely little café run by friends of two of our travellers from California. Simone did another swoop-and-run and at 12:30 p.m., we continued our trip south. Destination - the Amalfi Coast on the Mediterranean Sea. We drove through rain several times, and were finally rewarded with clear skies when we got to Salerno after 4 hours. We saw Mount Vesuvius off in the distance - we will see it again on Saturday. We are actually staying in a little suburb called Vietri sul Mare. We wound our way down, down, down the side of the hill to shore level which whetted our seaside appetites, and then partway back up the hill again to our hotel where we will be for 3 nights. Our hotel balconies are right, and I mean, right over top of the shore line. The view over the Mediterranean is enchanting.

We are having dinner in the hotel tonight overlooking the sea. Today’s drive was well worth it for theses views!!Read more