Daily Walkabouts

People often ask us, what do you do when you are in Italy.  I come here to decompress, the life here is simple, unstructured, and beautiful.  Around every bend in the road in this small town in Umbria there is beauty, whether it is an open door

a lane lined with blooming plants, 

or the view from a garden, 

these things make you stop and enjoy your surroundings.  In the US, I'm too busy to look, and too frantic to take the time.
Today Dr. C. and I did the first of our daily walkabouts, stopping at the bar for a cappuccino and cornetto,

and enjoying the view, then walking down the streets, taking photos of the sidewalk and balcony gardens just beginning to bloom.

Spello is called the city of flowers, and that is because on Corpus Domini, the streets are lined with designs done in flower petals the festival is called l'infiorata.  At this time of year, the stores, apartments, and balconies are all dressed with blooming plants.  There is a competition in neighborhoods, and between families to see who has the most beautiful display of flowers.

The weather has begun to turn, and we will have a high of about 76 degrees today; perfect for walking, and relaxing.
Continuing on our walk, we saw the church of San Lorenzo was open.  In the 17 years we have been coming here, this church has been closed, and the bells have been silenced.  Today we were stunned at the beauty inside this church.

Around most corners here, you will find things like the Church of San Lorenzo, a lovely view, or some beautiful flowers.

One street is known for its presepi, or nativities, and here are a few leftovers.  

Slowing down is the key word here; enjoying the sights and sounds of a small village, where the hardest decision is what to eat.  Ciao for now.

L'Infiorata, Spello

Yes, that is a typo!

I'm not sure where to start with this post, but I suppose Saturday is the best place.  On Saturday morning by 8 a.m. all the cars had to be off the street, and the residents began erecting struturre on the street to protect their flower paintings from the elements.  It has been rainy and cold here for the past few weeks, and no one knew what this weekend would bring.  Saturday was rainy, but fortunately, not windy.

Each team has a design that they keep secret from the other residents who all work in teams.  The designs are either drawn on the pavement or they are drawn on paper and then the paper is put on the pavement.

These are a few that we saw yesterday afternoon.  The residents don't begin to place the petals in the designs until after 9 p.m., then work all night/morning long to finish. 

 As with everything in this small community, the residents love to get together and chat.  This is a long night, and there is food, and wine and a lot of chatter.

I love the fact that this is multi-generational and that these kids will be teaching other kids in years to come

Silence, artists at work!

Even though this is hard work, and takes all night, there are still smiles throughout the night and into the morning.  Dr. C. and I decided to call it a night about 11 p.m and I had set my alarm so I could get out and see the designs around 6 a.m. before the crowds start. This tiny town swells to 100,000---it's a sea of people.

At 6:15 this morning, these groups were still at it, putting the finishing touches on their designs, then the tents will come down and the excess will be brushed away.  Each design is judged, and then winners are awarded in categories. 

After a quick cappucino and cornetto at Il Giardino (our favorite coffee bar) we headed back out and the tents had come down on some of the displays.

 This one is St. Francis on the right, then the Church in the center with the poor represented

 And finally, Il Papa, Pope Francis; they are thrilled to have a Pope named Francis and he will arrive in Assisi in October for the Feast of St. Francis.  It should be a mob scene, but so inspiring.  If you aren't following the Pope on Twitter (https://twitter.com/Pontifex), check it out, he's got a great tweet almost every day. 

Detail in the design

Noah's Ark

If I had to guess this would be the winner; my pano shots on my camera weren't working but this one depicts St. Francis and the church, hoping for a church that follows the teaching of St. Francis

The basilica

The Pope

St. Peters'

This is the design that our neighborhood team worked on--very tropical in nature

This afternoon, after the crowds had died down, the designs were still discernible on the street.

 
As I write this, Dr. C. and I have just polished off two pizzas from one of the best pizza places in Italy, and it's pouring rain outside, with a river running down our street, and thunder like cannons going off.  Tomorrow no one will know that there were flowers on the streets. Wishing you a buona notte from Spello.