Perugia, Assisi, e Orvietto

Tuesday morning began with our first showers at 34 Via dei Genovesi. Not bad; good water pressure and enough hot water for all four guys. The trip to Perugia left across the Tiber from Castel S. Angelo, so we began the morning walk along the river up towards the buses at around 07.30. The walk was really nice—definitely something I look forward to doing on all mornings with good weather. It takes about 20 minutes to get to the IES Center. See magnificence below:

Lungotevere della Farnesina - en route to class

When we arrived at the buses we found that IES Rome has a lot of students. About 150 I think. Packed into buses and not even in Rome for 24 hours, we all headed out of the city for our three day orientation. The bus ride offered a nice chance to finally sit still and do nothing but wait. The ride through the immediate countryside was as illuminating as it gave us an idea of what kind of businesses populated the areas outside the celebrated urban area; lots of car repair, construction, small business, and small farming. After a pit stop at an autogrille where many of us opted for a cappuccino, we finished our trip and arrived in the university and capital city town of Perugia.

Perugia

We stayed at a hotel just below the main hill of the town populated by university and government buildings. Everything is old. That’s pretty much all there is to it. After checking into our rooms we got on with the tour of Perugia, given by the lovely Costanza. She was a fox and immediately began accumulating a following among everyone on the walk actually paying attention to the tour. (Unfortunately, as there inevitably will be in all groups of college students, there is also here at IES a contingent of remarkably one-dimensional cretins already too cool to learn. On the first day.). The sites in Perugia offered a nice change from the more ancient sites of Rome. Perugia, the capital of Umbria, is full of Estruscan informed architecture from the Middle Ages. Today we see the result of a layered blend between that Etruscan heritage and the arrival of the late gothic. Subtract electricity, the few cars, and the retail stores, and you’re in 1350.

Perugia wasn’t all about the tour, even though I did take some time to go buy a sketchbook and devote an hour or two to some drawing. Tuesday night there was our first chance to really get out and stretch the limbs. Though not in Rome, everyone was committed to ensuring that plenty of merriment ensued on our first night together. Partying out Italian style in Perugia was so much fun. You can walk around with your drinks and enjoy the fact that you’re in such a well preserved slice of the Middle Ages. People are out meeting each other in the streets and it’s just a healthy, youthful scene. The Italians were all welcoming even to those of us who didn’t speak a word of the language; after our first non travel day, the morale was as high as one could have ever hoped.

Etruscan Arch

A personal highlight for me was my first true conversation with an Italian. I met Valentina on the steps of the basilica where she was hanging out with friends after class. I asked her about the name of some of the landmarks, and we got to talking about studying abroad, the University in Perugia, and what it might be like for her to study in the states. To be able to speak Italian, even if it is poor, is really a great thing in Italy. Especially in a university town, you will be answered in Italian if you get 1/10 words right. It’s a huge help and a huge boost of confidence. The impact of 4 semesters of Italian in the states was already showing. Thank you Columbia for your language requirement rules.

The Approach to the Church

Dinner was held back at the hotel, where we had a three course meal of pasta, carne, and dolce. After dinner, the troops rallied again for another approach to the Perugia nightlife. Almost all of the IES students that I met on the first day were a pleasure to be around; not all would be the best of friends, but all were ready to share a few beers and get to know new people.

Great detail and movement in this contemporary railing on the way to Assisi

Wednesday started off with 3 hours of boring presentations by the IES staff explaining useless information about health, safety, hospital use, emergency numbers, and insurance. After the brutal info sessions, the crew headed off for an afternoon tour of Assisi, land of the Franciscan order, founded of course, by S. Francis.

Assisi Magic

When we got to Assisi the communal jaw dropped and we remained in “awe” mode for the rest of the day. The church and crypt were decorated with the beautiful frescoes and the general planning of the church and piazza was really remarkable. I took note of some nice renovation details clearly executed by some very trustworthy architects who were given the job of repaving the ground of the piazza and providing the railing leading up to town. There was well conceived detail everywhere and I was enjoying every moment. These pictures give a clue, but I suggest you wait for the weather to be about 55 and sunny and check it out for yourself.

Assisi, sunset approaches

After another enlightening tour by Costanza, who by that point seemed to know everything about everything, I gathered some new friends to carryout the extra walk to the top of Assisi where la fortezza looked out over the entire valley. It was about dark when we began and when we got to the top, night had fallen. The castle, built by the Vatican in the 14^th century to show the power of the Papacy, was lit nicely and glowed against the dark sky. Very cool.

On the way down I got to talking with a guy named Ethan, who hails from Colorado. Ethan seems to be of the brand of fellow that COOP, back at Columbia, would cherish. He’s a skier and general pioneer of adventure, so we started fantasizing about the possible trips that could be taken during the semester, which included a trip to the Alps for some skiing and a trip somewhere in the Mediterranean to do some surfing and windsurfing. The surfing and windsurfing are things I badly want to do, so it was nice to find a potential come-with for those trips.

Inside the Church of S. Francis

All of IES Rome took over a restaurant in Assisi, where I gathered with Jessica, Charlotte, Ethan, and a bunch of other new people. We had a great dinner and talked about all kinds of stuff. Charlotte told her now infamous “scarf” story, which carried us on laughing for the rest of the meal. After dinner we took the bus back to the hotel and ventured back up to town for our last night in Perugia. Everyone was pretty beat so were shared a bottle of wine on the steps of the basilica and just took in the sights. Sam and John joined Ethan and me, who had come with Hallie, Jessica, and Lauren. The seven of us got to know each other a bit and after a couple hours headed back to sleep. That night in the hotel the four guys prioritized some man-time before for we all crashed. Definitely worth it, as it was then when Ethan decided to reveal to us what has gone down in our short history as “the Ethan story”.

Assisi 20.00

On Thursday we were to return to Rome, stopping in Orvietto on the way to meet Costanza for our last tour of the orientation trip. Costanza was now a hero; Ethan, Sam and I had convinced John to ditch his group and come along with us, as we were the lucky ones who had been fortunate enough to be in the group serenaded by Costanza. The duomo in Orvietto was outstanding. The detail was remarkable and its amazing condition despite its 650 year old lifetime made all of its stunning features even more impressive. The bas-relief on the front told a linear story of beginning with the creation and finishing with distinction between il Paradisio and l’Inferno. I immediately registered the connection to Dante (not really a stretch), but it gave me a chance to ask Costanza, in Italian, about the connection between the author and the Church’s sculpture. One point for Tom. Nice.

Costanza and the Guys in love in Orvietto

After the tour ended, we said a sad goodbye to Costanza, who left us her email address (!). She is coming to Rome at the end of February, so maybe there is a chance we will see her again after all. The seven of us—Ethan, John, Sam, Hallie, Jess, Lauren, and I—got together for some pizza after the tour and then finished off our time in Orvietto with some picture taking.

Back in Rome, tired and ready for bed, we all denied ourselves the sleep we needed and went out to drink. Hooray!

That night, after having a nice dinner with Jess’ roommates and ISC (Italian student companion), Valentina, we went around to la Piazza di S. Maria in Trastevere to a bar where a bunch of us sat down for a few beers. We ran into our waiter from the restaurant, and he and I started talking (in Italian, of course). Valentina and another ISC came along and had a great conversation with the three of them. Speaking Italian is so choice.

The crew walks the streets of Orvietto

At some point, when I catch up with all of this, I will take some time to explain more of the everyday stuff that goes on around the apartment. There is no way to record everything, yet everything seems worthy of recording. Morale is high, I’m in one of the best general moods of my life, and somehow, I feel like the only way from here is up. Now that is awesome.

A nice detail of the duomo in Orvietto to finish it off

Ciaociao!