Spoleto’s Church of Sant’Eufemia has been aptly described as “a jewel of a church, situated inside the courtyard of archbishop’s palace and inspiring a profound sense of welcome, fascinating us with its…
The imposing medieval castle of Bolsena overlooks Lake Bolsena, the largest volcanic lake in Europe. The lake was a volcano about 300,000 years ago, its shores were settled probably in the Neolithic…
Bolsena celebrates in floral splendor the Feast of Corpus Domini, for after all, this feast promulgated in the 13th-century – and also known as “Corpus Christi” – originates with a miracle here…
In preparation for my ZOOM presentation May 8, 2021 on Deruta, I needed to see the Museo Regionale della Ceramica, but for now, that museum – like many – is closed due to COVID…
What’s absolutely essential to the production of bellissima glazed earthenware, maiolica? Passione. I very recently spoke to five young women in “la citta’ della ceramica,” Deruta – each one carefully masked – as they worked with painstaking…
Probably built upon Roman foundations and later devastated by the Goths in the 6th-century and later by the Lombards (6th-8th centuries), the ancient names of Deruta (Ruto, Ruta, Rupta, Direpta Diruta) all…
At over 2500 feet above sea level on the wooded slopes of Mount Subasio backdropping Assisi… …the retreat of San Francesco, Eremo delle Carceri – called “the Hermitage” – remains a silent…
January can be icy cold in Umbria but a month of warmth, too: the warmth of the locals celebrating January festivals. An Umbrian winter festival absolutely not to miss is the late-January…
Pino and I headed into Latium to the Franciscan sanctuary of Greccio on our first icy cold December day. We headed into the Valnerina and then south into Latium, medieval villages perched…
Once a sacred site, always a sacred site. Or often, in any case, here in Italy. Spello’s Church of Santa Maria Maggiore in Spello is an example, testament the Roman columns to…