Travel

Spoleto, Umbria, Italy, walking tour of Upper Town

Oh, Spoleto. You are a beautiful city. One of the great hill towns of Italy, located in the region of Umbria in the center of the country. It's on a hill, so there are many steps in Spoleto, and also some little lanes in this pedestrian zone at the heart of town. We are going to take you on a walking tour through this delightful historic center, which you can experience during the daytime and after dark when the town comes out for its evening stroll for the classic Italian passeggiata. The pedestrian town center has a special character, with inviting cobblestone lanes and alluring medieval alleys. This is an in-depth look at the real Spoleto getting beyond just the tourist monuments of the churches and the museums, which are practically the only sites that you'll read about in a typical guidebook. In fact it is hard to find a guidebook that has a lot of useful information about Spoleto. The Umbria guidebooks might have a small chapter that covers the churches, museums, restaurants and hotels. But they really don't tell you much about where to walk when you're here, and what to see. From the Roman period to the present day, the charm of Spoleto history has seduced visitors through the ages. With an excellent state of preservation the old town is not very different from what it looked like to the 18th and 19th century travelers. Spoleto has so many little lanes, and staircases, and historic buildings, and vistas that you'll probably want to spend a couple of days here. The old town is about a square mile, so it's a very manageable size, and it's chock-full of restaurants and shops, of course, and museums and old palaces. It makes a great place for walking. Spoleto is very convenient because it's located on a main train line, and there's a little public bus that will run you up to the old town for a very modest fee, or you could take a taxi. Most people are familiar with Tuscany, with its famous capital of Florence and below it is the city of Rome, and while Umbria is less well-known, it's every bit as beautiful as Tuscany. Umbria has lots of these small, beautifully preserved, historic towns that are just waiting for you to visit. And they are not crowded because they're not nearly as well-known as many of the cities of Tuscany. Starting out at Piazza Della Liberta. It's a good place to begin because now you're on the edge of the old town, ready to explore, and city buses will bring you directly here from the train station. Also there's a parking lot down below for automobiles connected up by escalators. Corso Mazzini extends out from the piazza and is one of the main streets of the city. It's a broad pedestrian Promenade lined with shops, hotels and restaurants, with alluring side streets. Corso Mazzini is quite different than most streets in the old town because it's wide and straight. Most of the streets in the old town are narrow and curved, dating back centuries, but Corso Mazzini was created in the mid-19th century, an effort to make the old town more accessible. It's also delightful to stroll in the evening when locals are out shopping, talking, enjoying their stroll – the passeggiata. We will be showing you quite a bit of Spoleto at night as well as during the daytime. They even have some little buses that can navigate these side streets. There is a mix here of some streets that are for pedestrians only, and others that allow some cars, but are still easy to walk on. This is a very safe place to be, for visitors and locals alike. The Town Hall, with its Roman House, we will show you in our other movie, and right next to it, Piazza Del Mercato. This place has been the center of town for more than 2000 years. The Romans established their settlement here in the year 241 BC. And this was the main central square of those ancient Romans. It was their forum, surrounded by temples and palaces and lively activity like shopping, eating and drinking, and that is still going on today. A favorite spot here is Café Degli Artisti. It's a terrific place for a drink, try the local wine. While Tuscany is famous for its wines, like the Brunellos, Chiantis the super Tuscans, Umbria also produces quality wine. Around the corner, there is a major Roman site. It's the arch of Monterone. It was one of the 5 main gates through the ancient Roman defensive walls. This leads us right to the via delle Felici which has its own arch leading into the street. There are lots of the street arches in Spoleto. It leads to via Brignone and then around the bend to Piazza Campello where you'll see the Mascherone Fountain. And there are some benches in this little park, so it's a good place to sit, watch the cats, and rest up after climbing that staircase. We walk to Piazza Del Duomo and then along via Del Duomo, with a few side trips. Via Aurelio Saffi has several arches across it, including one with the medieval loggia at the top. http://tourvideos.com/