Arrivederci, Assisi!

Indeed, we said good-bye to Assisi yesterday, one more poignant farewell. After breakfast I wandered through the Basilica again, trying to look at everything and breathe it in to keep it with me. Such a magnificent and holy place! I wandered then, up hills and down,

to a sidewalk cafe beside this fountain for fresh-squeezed orange juice,

 

wrote yesterday's blog, and finished up Assisi shopping.

Good-bye, Assisi!

Because we had stayed in the hill town part of Assisi, and the train runs through the valley, we had an opportunity to visit Santa Maria degli Angeli which contains within it the tiny chapel (Porzuincola) which Francis and the Brothers restored and where he prayed, lived, and ultimately died. The chapel is located within the huge church which you see here:

Now a view of the chapel within: (These following photos are taken from postcards and a book.)

The chapel glows in the light of the sanctuary!

And now, peering into the chapel:

Here is a small piece of the altar wall, The Temptation of St. Francis, though actually it's the end of his temptation because the devil is leaving and God's hand is seen:

It is another amazing place!

Following our train ride into Rome, we walked and walked and walked and walked...(get it?!) then went down and down--sometimes escalators, sometimes stairs--to the Metro and, finally, up, up, up and out into our new neighborhood. Bob, Denise, and I located the apartment then found dinner and gelato before calling it a day.  I bought new shoes this morning, since my feet were suffering; then wandered a little before returning and settling in.

Nice place, eh? Two bedrooms, two baths--modern, very clean luxury!

Ciao!