Today was the first day that we braved driving ourselves. The day before we were all piled into a church bus sort of thing, with a driver. (this gets confusing because I’m actually writing this the day after-anyway-sorry I’m tired) So on this day we rented two cars to drive ourselves! Our group split into the 2 cars. Shout out to Anne Lugar who drove us-she the real MVP because it was not easy! We drove down tiny narrow streets on our way to Assisi. At one point, we drove down a street only to find it blocked! See the pic of what we saw below:

Martha got out of our car, and tried to explain in English that we needed to get past them. The driver threw up her hands and gestured to the car like, what am I to do? Then Martha, without taking a quick pollof the group, said “What if we helped?” So then we all jumped out of our car and began carrying some sort of animal feed pellets into her business.

We were laughing! They were shocked for the unexpected American assistance. Some people were able to carry two bags at once (ahem, Marian) so me, wanting to carry my fair share tried to carry two at once as well. This is how that turned out:

Here are a few more pics, including the garbage man who also needed to get down the street.

We needed up making friends!

Then we were off to Assisi-home of Francis of Assisi and Saint Clare.

Assisi is on a hill and all the buildings are a beautiful stone white. The churches are a mix of gothic and classic. (Who listened on the tour? Me!) Also, did you know that St. Francis’ Dad used to chain him in his room? That’s terrible! Also, Saint Clare (who’s mummified body we were able to view 🤷🏼‍♀️) was called the Saint of television in a joking way by the locals. One of her miracles (to be a saint-gotta have those miracles) was that she was able to know what was happening in mass, and pray and follow along, even though she was bed ridden at home. So they said it was like she had watched it on television. Which of course wasn’t around until several centuries later. Marian, who’s daughter is also named Claire, was soaking up all the information so she could relay it all to her daughter. Both Claire(s) are honest. Marian said her daughter was the Patron Saint of TikTok, while the other Clare is the Saint of Television! Below are some photos from Assisi.

After our tours, we were able to do some shopping in the quaint stores scattered throughout the hill of Assisi. That hill is no joke. We went from the very bottom to our car at the very top. Our calves (moo!) were killing us! Some the sidewalk/roadways were almost straight up. My Apple Watch doesn’t know what has happened to me! My watch kept sending me messages “Wow! Goal achieved! You’re working out!” You can almost hear the surprise coming through my watch’s messages. The poor watch thinks that it has finally gotten through to me. No, I’m shopping, but sure, I’ll take the accolades.

In one shop, Martha was told that if she presented the shop owner with her passport that he could stamp it and she would receive a rebate at the airport. Well, we all know from my previous post that Martha wears 2 money belts while we shop. (The South Bank and the North Bank). Martha’s passport was deep in South Bank and she was wearing a dress. She told the shop keepers and they said 🤷🏼‍♀️. So Martha crouches down and begins searching. The store owner is saying “Sorry no back room”. After a bit of digging, South Bank produced the passport and Martha was able to get the stamp for the rebate! Martha has always been a sucker for a good deal!

We drove back to our villa after seeing the breathtaking town, touring the churches, climbing the hill, and shopping. We were greeted with the smells of picci pasta, roast chicken and potatoes, and tiramisu for dessert. It was a long, tiring, day but unforgettable.

On our way home, we saw a rainbow. See if you can see it in the pic below. Also, thanks again to Anne, who can brave the Italian roads!