Today on our last day, we visit the art studio of Paolo Medici, a master in frottage, the art of creating images through rubbing over a textured surface. Paolo has created a work based on three very large paintings by the Florentine painter Paolo Uccello depicting events that took place at the Battle of San Romano between …
On the drive from Gubbio to Urbino, we pass through the mountains on curvy, rural roads. We stop in the hilltop village of Frontone, an ancient town once owned by the Montefeltro family. The castle, which provides unrestricted views of the area, dominates the village. Only about twenty people live here now. On the weekends …
The van trip to Gubbio brings us through many miles of green countryside. Our bookmaking master Giuseppe “Pepe” Baldinelli delights us with his sense of humor and expertise. His family business is called IKUNICO, The name comes from the ancient language of the Umbri peoples which was discovered on bronze plaques now owned by the …
The main piazza in Fabriano is nearly empty in the early morning. Fabriano’s name is based on the word “fabro” which means “blacksmith.” Around the town historic murals and plaques on walls and buildings depict blacksmiths working with iron. Debra, a member of our group, buys shoes from Titi, the woman on the left. Titi …
I leave my luggage at the Termini train station. There’s a long line and lots of confusion. I decide to use lockers in the future as there’s no need to wait in line and no grumpy baggage handlers. I meet up with two other members of our tour and take off on the train to …
Today we took off for for the Adriatic Coast, for a town called Sirolo. There we peered down at a beach only reached by boat. The beach we went to required climbing down what seemed like miles of stairs to a rocky beach filled with quite a number of people. We spent a bit of …
Today we look more closely at the facade of the church in the Piazza della Repubblica. It was once called the Church of the Adoration of Death, as it was connected to the brotherhood of the poor who were responsible for taking care of prisoners and burying the dead. The hour glass shape around the …
The walls of Jesi are not totally intact around the city, but enough of it remains to get a very good idea of what it must have been like to live in a walled city. The main square, the Piazza della Repubblica, serves as the meeting place for our group. These men closely supervise the …
Today we took off toward the coast, toward Genga, leaving behind Fabriano. We passed through what’s called the Gola di Frassasi, a deep gorge of the Sentino River that runs for miles. We visited the Sanctuary of the Madonna of Frassasi, which required climbing up a very long and steep trail passing stations of the …
I had to take a bus to Fabriano, because Urbino does not have a train station. Adalberto very kindly gave me a ride to the bus station in what I thought was plenty of time to get organized. On the way, we talked about the Festa dell’Aquilone. “I hate it! I hate it!” He couldn’t …