Day 19: Spoleto, Sun, 28°

I’ve Got Grotesque Paintings!! 

Spoleto has been a good stop. I sometimes feel as though I’ve taken too many days off on this relatively short walk. I remind myself that part of the purpose of this route was to spend a little more time visiting some of the key historical Umbrian cities. On so many of my prior distance walks I’ve only stopped a couple of times. So last year on the Via Francigena I tried to change that practice a little by stopping in several places for a few days at a time. The positive is that you get a little deeper historical and cultural experience. The downside is that you lose a little bit of your walking rhythm or flow. That’s been the case for me since I left Florence, however, as I’ve said previously, these stops are a big part of this particular route experience for me. In any event, tomorrow I will continue on until I reach Rome in just eight stages.

So how did I spend my day in Spoleto? The short answer is, very enjoyably! I first had a brief look at the Spoleto Duomo. There was a service going on inside, but a brief look suggested to me that the outside was more interesting than the inside. There’s this very unusual set of stairs that comes down from the upper city to the Duomo. I managed to get a much needed stamp in my credential there.

I then went in search of Ponte delle Torre, a striking arched bridge built in the 14th century across a deep ravine between two fortresses. As you can see I successfully found it.

The actual route of the Via St Francis goes across the top of this bridge. Looking at it I thought that would be a bit daunting! Perhaps fortunately for me a major earthquake seven years ago damaged the bridge forcing walkers to make a bit of a tough detour around the gorge, coming in from the backside in the distance above that cliff. I just can’t win!🙄

In this photo, you can see where they’re working to repair the bridge.

Once I reach the tower on the other side of the bridge, I’ll continue off to the right and then up over the mountain behind. Yes, tomorrow begins with a significant climb. No surprise on this route. I’m getting used to it. I told Annemarie yesterday that I didn’t think that I’ve lost any weight, but perhaps I was a bit optimistic. It certainly makes the climate easier though, carrying as little as possible up those hills! Perhaps I’ll have to add some chocolate into my diet?😂

From the bridge, I climbed up to the fortress behind me. It was a pretty decent climb, and on a very warm morning I was sweating profusely by the time I reach the top. Once I find that climbing gear, I tend to drop quickly into it without thinking. 

Once again there were only a few people visiting this site when I arrived. As I walked back down the hill and into town at around 11:00 there was quite a crowd slowly slogging their way up the hill. By then, it was hotter, much hotter!






There were some interesting pieces with pretty good explanations written in English. 

Of course the views from up there were quite outstanding!

Looking back towards Assisi on the right and Perugia on the left. Historically, Spoleto was very strategically placed. It has mountains on three sides and it controls access through the pass that I will begin to explore tomorrow. It also commands an exceptional line of sight down the valley.

Afterwards, I wandered the back streets of town just outside the tourist zone. 

I always enjoy finding these quiet, backstreet areas, sometimes just a block or two away from the more heavily trafficked areas




And just for the record you can tell Saoirse that I found Peter Pan’s shadow! How intriguing🤨

And what about my little apartment? Actually, it’s pretty cool. It’s situated in the old city in a building that my host has informed me it’s almost 1000 years old. Given that there have been many large earthquakes in this area over the past millennium, I was able to sleep fairly soundly, knowing that the walls were likely to stay up. 

The daily living quarters are on the main floor.

And the bedroom is in a loft looking down on the main floor

I’d stay here again. 

And this is what my daughter Erin, the art historian, tells me is called grotesque painting. When I sent her photos I thought she was telling me that the painting on the ceiling was really ugly, and I laughed at her message. Of course in my ignorance I misunderstood. Erin went on to explain to me that this form of art was very popular in the 16th century and that Raphael did a lot of this type of painting at the Vatican. Apparently it was super popular. There’s so much to learn, and so little time!

Anyway, that’s the story from Spoleto. As I write this at 15:00 the thunder and lightning are doing their usual thing late in the afternoon. The same happened yesterday and last night, but fortunately no rain. I’m hoping this will repeat tonight, that is, no rain. I have to climb tomorrow. 

In 40 minutes, the Manchester derby will take place in London as the two sides battle it out for the oldest football cup in England. The FA cup. The game will be played at Wembley stadium and I will be following online as well as possible. I have a cold beer and some potato chips ready for the game. There’s been a lot of bad blood between these teams over the years, and I fear that the blue team will have the upper hand this time. That said, anything can happen on a given day. I live in hope!  ⚽️ ⚽️ ⚽️