2366, 2367 ITALY (Umbria) - Umbria, the green heart of Italy

2366 Umbria: 1. The Basilica of San Francesco in Assisi;
2. Church of Saint Rita in Cascia; 3. The Cathedral of Orvieto;
4. Todi Cathedral; 5. Spoleto Cathedral; 6. Venus' Gate in Spello;
7. Palazzo dei Consoli and Church of San Giovanni in Gubbio;
8. The Albornoz fortress in Narni; 9. Fontana Maggiore in Perugia.

Umbria is the only Italian region having neither a coastline nor a border with other countries. Partly hilly and partly flat, and fertile owing to the valley of the Tiber, its topography includes part of the central Apennines. It is crossed also by the Umbrian valley, and includes the Lake Trasimeno, and Cascata delle Marmore, the tallest man-made waterfall in Europe (165m). Umbria is known for its landscapes, traditions, history, artistic legacy, and influence on culture.

2367: Umbria: 1. Cascata delle Marmore;
2. The Basilica of San Francesco
in Assisi; 3. The Church Santa Maria
della Consolazione in Todi; 4. Palazzo
dei Consoli in Gubbio.

 

The region is named for the Umbri people, an Italic people which was absorbed by the expansion of the Romans. After the collapse of the Roman empire, parts of the region were owned by Ostrogoths,  Byzantines, and Lombards. Later, Charlemagne gave some Umbrian territories to the Pope. Some cities acquired a form of autonomy, and were frequently at war with each other. In the 14th century, the region was subsumed into the Papal States, and the Papacy ruled it until the end of the 18th century.

0064, 2353 ITALY (Umbria) - Lake Trasimeno

0064 Lake Trasimeno - Passignano sul Trasimeno

Posted on 09.12.2011, and 06.03.2016
Located in the south of the Po River and to the north of the nearby Tiber River, Lago Trasimeno (Lake Trasimeno) is the fourth largest in Italy, only slightly less than Lago di Como (Lake Como). But the similarities between the two lakes ends here, because if Como is a glacial lake with a maximum depth of 410m, Lake Trasimeno is an endorheic body of water (that means it don’t flow into the sea) and has a modest maximum depth, only 6m, which sometimes, when the precipitation level (the only source of water of the lake) is low, can dramatically decrease. Despite this, Trasimene water quality is still very good, because the Umbrian people have protected the lake.

2353 Lake Trasimeno - Torricella

There are three islands in the lake. The largest is Isola Polvese, but the only inhabited one is Isola Maggiore, on wich is located a small fishing village with around thirty residents. Most of the buildings, including the ruins of a Franciscan monastery, date from the 14th century. In 1213, Saint Francis of Assisi went there on retreat for the Lent. Surrounding the lake are old small towns, and isolated castles. The area wasn't at all avoided by wars. Here, on the northern shore of the lake, in June 21, 217 B.C., Hannibal has caught Consul Flaminius and 30,000 Roman soldiers in an ambush which history has recorded as The Battle of Lake Trasimeno. Also on here has passed the Trasimene Line, a German defensive line during the Italian Campaign of WWII.

0036, 1100 ITALY (Umbria) - Assisi, the Basilica of San Francesco and Other Franciscan Sites (UNESCO WHS)

Posted on 13.11.2011, and 15.06.2014
Built by the Romans on a series of terraces on Monte Subasio, Assisi stood out only along with the foundation of the Franciscan religious order by Saint Francis of Assisi (born Giovanni Francesco di Bernardone) and of the Poor Clares order also by him, but together with his disciple, Saint Claire of Assisi (born Chiara Offreduccio), both at the beginning of 13th century. Saint Francis is one of the most venerated religious figures in history and shares honors with St. Catherine of Siena as the patron saint of Italy (from 1939).

Orthodox as religion and grew up under the Ceauşescu regime, I found out about St. Francis only late, after the age of 30, when I got in my hand an excellent written and structured volume, Gospel Living: Saint Francis of Assisi Yesterday and Today, that I strongly recommend you. The book has three parts, each with a different author: Francis of Assisi: Life - Life Program - Experiences (by the Capuchin Anton Rotzetter), Franciscan spirit over the centuries (by the Capuchin Eillibrord-Christian Van Dijk) and Francis of Assisi and his followers today (by the Franciscan Thaddee Matura). The book impressed me and made me think more to some things, on me, the agnostic who reads with great pleasure Céline, Samuel Beckett and Emil Cioran.

0079 ITALY (Umbria) - Motor ship Perugia

Today fell the first snow of this winter in my city. Has anything to do the snow  with the postcard that I want to present next? No. But the Christmas is coming, and for me, as for Sheila, winter holidays are closely related to snow. It is a widespread opinion among those living in the temperate zone, although in no case it snowed in Bethlehem when Jesus was born.