Thursday November 26, 2009

We boarded a Pullman at 7 am and headed off to Assisi. The Assisi day trip is always a great change of pace from the noise and traffic of Rome. Two and half hours later we got off the bus and walked up to the Basilica of St. Francis. After finding out that our Mass was scheduled for noon instead of 10 am, we decided to see the Basilica of St. Clare first. There we venerated the body of St. Clare and the cross of San Damiano. From there we broke into smaller groups and explored the Medieval streets of Assisi and met back at St. Francis’ to take in the Upper Church. Even though many of Giotto frescoes were destroyed in the earthquake of 1997, the remaining frescoes still show the brilliance of the painter. The fantastic woodwork and inlaid wood of the choir stalls were also quite inspiring.

We had Mass in one of the chapels of the monastery connected to the Basilica and afterwards we venerated the tomb of St. Francis. Smaller groups took advantage of free time and lunch until we met up with the bus at 4 pm. From there we descended to the lower part of Assisi to visit the church of Santa Maria degli Angeli.








Santa Maria degli Angeli houses the Porziuncola which was the original chapel used by St. Francis and his followers. This small structure sits in the middle of the towering basilica and remains a powerful concrete connection to the life of St. Francis.




On the way back Rome, we got our Thanksgiving meal at a highway stop like we have on the turnpike in the States. A smaller group got a quick dinner at a nearby restaurant when we got back to Rome.