When a Friend Comes to Visit...

Il 15 novembre
Assisi

The sun is shining, the air is chilled and crisp; layers of fog covered the valley this morning, but all that remains is a light haze. Just about everyone is wearing a scarf,men and women alike, and my own collection of these wonderful accessories has grown considerably since I started coming to Italy. (There was even a segment on the news last night about wearing scarves and people were asked how they liked to wear them, as there are many options to scarf wearing.) There are scarves for every season and I am reaching that point of having to decide which one to wear when I get dressed in the morning. I came here in October with a couple of light scarves that I had purchased on a prior trip, but I am going home with heavier suitcases as my winter wardrobe, and not just with more scarves, has increased considerably since last week.

My lovely friend, Janine, arrived here from France on Wednesday evening and after taking her to see la Basilica di San Francesco on Thursday morning (a five minute walk from my apartment), I continued my role of tour guide as we strolled uphill to the Piazza Commune. Although I am not a resident of Assisi, I don't consider myself a tourist here; I never take for granted the beauty and magic of where I am, but it has become a part of my everyday world and I live and breathe it daily. I came here to study and absorb the culture and rarely went into the shops, except for some browsing, as I didn't think I needed to buy anything; this all changed with Janine's arrival, as I now have a “personal shopper.”

Assisi is certainly not a “shopper's paradise”, but there are some lovely boutiques here, in addition to the many stores that sell the usual tourist trinkets. I COLORI DEL TEMPO is a privately-owned, charming shop with an eclectic collection of clothing and accessories primarily for the younger woman, but with much to delight those of us at a “certain age.” Janine and I were left to ourselves to pick out and try on and, with her encouragement, I left with a large bag of unplanned and terrific purchases. The best part was that I was able to find clothing made completely in Italia which is becoming more and more difficult as this country, like so many, is manufacturing heavily in Asia. icolorideltempo@yahoo.it

And if jewelry is on your list of “must buy when I visit Assisi”, visit Assisi Jewels (in business since 1973) to find that delightful bauble to add just the right touch to whatever you're wearing.  I bought a terrific Tedora charm bracelet there and Fausto very patiently helped me put it together. He's got lots of creative ideas and loves what he does...a real pleasure. www.assisijewels.com

Janine and I took the train to Firenze on Saturday morning. Although it is difficult to get to many of the small, quaint towns in Umbria without a car, it's easy enough to get on a train www.trenitalia.com for a visit to any of the larger cities and, as Firenze is less than two and a half hours away, we decided to go for the day. It was colder than in Assisi and I was surprised at the number of tourists still visiting, as November is definitely not tourist season in Italy, but we still had a good time walking about. We hadn't planned on any major sightseeing as we had each spent a bit of time in this city of art and history, but the train ride was an opportunity to see some of the countryside and the day was one those “spur of the moment” adventures. The best part of the trip was visiting with my friends, Francesca and Paolo, who own a B n' B not far from the train station...and I did buy a leather handbag...

I had the pleasure of taking la mia amica to a couple of my favorite restaurants in Assisi; every tour guide needs to know the great places to eat. There are, actually, more than two on my list, depending upon what I'm in the mood for, but the food is so good at TRATTORIA degli UMBRI that we ate there three times. Owned by Andrea and Roberta, who just happen to be my landlords, everything served in this charming eatery is fresh and homemade with just the right amount of subtle flavoring. Andrea will greet you at the door and show you to your table while Roberta, along with another chef, is in the kitchen preparing culinary treats for every palate. When we ate lunch there on Sunday, every table was filled and people were being turned away. If the weather is warm, a table outside is the perfect spot to eat as the trattoria is located on the Piazza del Commune, across from the fountain. trattoriadegliumbri@alice.it

Now that Janine has left, I'm on my own for my remaining two weeks here...time to get back to studying and cooking at home....well, maybe a few meals until my cupboard is bare...

Living in Assisi and having a good friend come to visit...it doesn't get much better than that... another special memory to add to my ever increasing list...