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Host city:
Bastia Umbra
Gastronomy
As for a Gastronomic Tour, both inside and outside the historic center, there are numerous venues and restaurants to eat in Bastia Umbra. A list can be found on Visit Bastia Umbra – the Institutional Web App of the Municipality of Bastia Umbra (including information on hotels and farm stays, shopping, culture, and art).
At the end of August, in Costano di Bastia Umbra, there’s the Festival of Porchetta. One of Umbria’s most important and renowned festivals centered around pork porchetta, a traditional craft linked to the locality of Costano.
In September: Palio de San Michele. The feast of the Patron Saint, featuring a challenge among the four districts with games in the square, open-air performances, and the “lizza,” which is a relay race in the circuit of Piazza Mazzini. There are also four taverns where you can taste typical Umbrian dishes.
Points of interest
Benedictine Monastery of Sant’Anna (Piazza Umberto I). The ancient building preserves traces of its first imposing construction, the Baglioni Fortress. Built by the Perugian family of the Baglioni, it originated as a fortress and military citadel, strategically located halfway between Assisi and Perugia. Externally, on via della Rocca, an impressive part of the ancient construction can be admired, the ramparts from which the name Bastia derives, formerly called Insula Romana.
Former Church of Sant’Angelo, now Auditorium Sant’Angelo. Ancient parish church, the oldest religious building in our city predating the year one thousand, now municipal property, venue for conferences, weddings, and cultural events.
Medieval gate of Sant’Angelo. The oldest of the access gates, formerly equipped with a drawbridge, restored to its ancient splendor by a very recent restoration intervention.
Church of Santa Croce, rich in artworks of the Umbrian school from the 14th-20th centuries. Polyptych of Sant’Angelo created by Niccolò di Liberatore, known as l’Alunno. Originally a Franciscan convent, the first erected by the Franciscans after that of San Francesco in Assisi, it was transformed into a church in the 18th century, with precious stained glass windows from the Caselli-Moretti Artistic Studio. (Piazza Mazzini)
Parish church of San Michele, with imposing portal and stained glass windows, inaugurated in 1961.
Church of San Rocco, an ancient inscription on the external wall recalls its construction due to popular devotion to the Saint believed to have protected Bastia from the plague in the 17th century.
Consultation Room in the Municipality of Bastia Umbra (Piazza Cavour, 19). Richly decorated by the painter Benvenuto Crispoldi in 1921. Visit during the opening hours of the Municipality or on special occasions, venue for weddings (for information, Municipality of Bastia Umbra, 075 80181)
Outside the historic center:
Ancient Church of San Paolo delle Abbadesse (formerly Monastery of the Abbesses). Deeply linked to the life of Saint Clare as it was there that the saint of Assisi had her sheltered for a period, entrusting her to the protection of the nuns with the intention of shielding it from the wrath of her family, belonging to the noble Sciri lineage and opposed to Clare’s choice, desiring to follow in the footsteps of Brother Francis. (Located inside the Municipal Cemetery, in Via Mantovani, along one of the roads leading from Bastia to Assisi. Open every day from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm).
Perugia
Overview
Perugia is a city rich in history and culture, with several fascinating places to explore.
Local cuisine
The Torcolo di San Costanzo is a typical doughnut-shaped cake from Perugia, which is prepared for the feast day of Saint Costanzo, one of the city’s patron saints, whose martyrdom is commemorated on 29 January. In the 16th century, on the saint’s feast day, wealthy congregations bought large quantities of Torcolo to be distributed to the poor. It also seems that a pretty serious competition was held between the city’s bakers, whose products were then offered to passers-by. Today, on the occasion of the patron saint’s day, Borgo XX Giugno – the street in the immediate vicinity of the Church dedicated to the saint – hosts the historic Fiera Grande, an exhibition market with stands selling typical products and handicrafts, while in Corso Vannucci, in front of Palazzo dei Priori, and in the Monteluce district, slices of Torcolo prepared by the city’s bakers and confectioners are distributed.
Wine and beverages
Along the course of the Tiber we find a specific DOC of Perugian wines. With it, other DOC representing the territory with red wines, also of a certain aging and white wines of remarkable freshness.
In the province of Perugia the two DOCGs of the region: the red Montefalco Sagrantino produced with the Sagrantino autochthonous grapevine (or so believed) even though its origins are uncertain: it could be of Iberian origin as well as Saracen (with the dry and passito variants) and the Torgiano Rosso Riserva, produced with Sangiovese grapevine.
In the province of Perugia nine of the DOC produced in the region can be found.
The Assisi is produced with the grapevines Trebbiano toscano, Grechetto, Sangiovese, Cabernet sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot nero as well as specific vines cultivated in Umbria (with the variants white, grechetto, red, rosato, novello, cabernet sauvignon, merlot and pinot nero, the last three also in the reserve type).
Points of interest
Here are five of the most beautiful and interesting locations in Perugia:
Corso Vannucci and Piazza IV Novembre: the beating heart of Perugia, Corso Vannucci is an elegant pedestrian street lined with shops, cafés and restaurants. It leads to Piazza IV Novembre, the city’s main square, dominated by the Fontana Maggiore and surrounded by major historical buildings such as the Palazzo dei Priori and the Cathedral of San Lorenzo.
Palazzo dei Priori: located in Piazza IV Novembre, the Palazzo dei Priori is a magnificent Gothic building that houses the National Museum of Umbria and the Municipal Administration. Inside, you can admire works of art, paintings and sculptures covering centuries of Umbrian artistic history.
National Gallery of Umbria: this art gallery is located in the Palazzo dei Priori complex and offers an exceptional collection of Umbrian art from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. Visitors can admire masterpieces by artists such as Perugino, Pinturicchio and Beato Angelico.
Rocca Paolina: The Rocca Paolina is a fortress that dominates the historical centre of Perugia. Built in the 16th century, it has a fascinating history. Today, visitors can explore the remains of the fortress, which include a labyrinth of underground streets connecting the upper and lower city.
San Francesco al Prato Basilica: this basilica dates back to the 13th century and is one of the main places of worship in Perugia. A single-nave building that preserves its original structure. Its Gothic façade is nothing short of impressive. It was left uncovered for years as the vaults collapsed due to landslides on the hillside: the monuments and chapels were lost, but the polychrome façade, on the other hand, was restored to its splendour in 1926 by architect Pietro Angelini. In the 1930s and 1960s, the deconsecrated temple was internally demolished. Only the beginning of the 2000s saw the start of a radical restoration, and further work was completed in 2022, turning it into an auditorium following the original design by Bruno Signorini.
These places offer just a glimpse of Perugia’s historical and cultural richness. The city is bursting with museums, churches, villages and fascinating architecture, an unmissable opportunity to fully immerse yourself in its fascinating history.
