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GUBBIO, Medieval Splendor
Gubbio is less than an hour by car from Assisi and a route "off the beaten track" winds through a stretch of the most stunning landscapes of Umbria, past the crumbling ruins of abandoned 12th c. feudal castle.
Dramatically perched on a hill overlooking the ruins of its Roman theater, here in Gubbio time seems to have quite literally stopped in the Middle Ages. Gubbio's "detachment" from today's world is also a reality: the town is not on a railway line - here, one feels in a world apart. Stop first to pay tribute to Gubbio's World War II martyrs at a revered local shrine. Afer a stop at the 1st c. A.D. Roman theater, your walk through the labyrinthine medieval backstreets will takes you to the imposing 14th c. Palazzo dei Consoli, said to rival Palazzo Vecchio in Florence in its beauty (I think it surpasses it).
Find a lovely young artisan at work on the gold-incised black bucchero (Etruscan technique). Sabrina is acclaimed as one of Italy's most talented living ceramicists.
A charming backstreet wander will lead you to the funicular. Take the ride up the funicular to the top of Mt. Ingino and the monastery where St. Ubaldo, patron saint of Gubbio, is buried. "The locals" head there to touch the Ceri in reverence. Join them in paying tribute.
At the end of a memorable Gubbio day, head back to Assisi via another road ...more Umbrian landscapes to delight the eye!
Click here to read more about Gubbio's passione for their Ceri!
Read about - and see! - Gubbio's May festival here
Click here to read about an April Gubbio festival
Read about World War II Gubbio martyrs