Assisi and Espresso

Have I mentioned that the exchange rate was a killer? One euro equaled about $1.60. That means if something was 3 euros it cost approximately $4.80. The Internet Cafe turned out to be the place to hang out after dinner. I asked the waiter if they had anything decaffeinated, since I hadn't been sleeping well he says "oh, caffe?" Si, I say back. So I think I am getting caffe or in plain English, coffee since at our hotel restaurant caffe is coffee. Here is what I got. Okay, now this is in a demitasse cup, you know, those smaller than small cups Italians use because their coffee is too strong to drink a normal sized cup? To give you a more visual picture think of say...orange or lemon extract that comes in a 1 ounce bottle. This is about half of that. I think I'm getting a whole cup of coffee and I get half an ounce of this stuff. He puts it down in front of me and I am in disbelief, so much so that I look at Melissa and Mike who are sitting with me, my hands gesturing to my cup of whatever and say "what the :-))) Where the h--- is the coffee?" It was just to funny to get upset about. It looked a little thick so I swirled the cup slightly and half of my drink spilled into the saucer :) good grief! Mike comments that I just lost half my drink. We all laughed! Of course this fraction of an ounce of espresso cost me 2.5 euros so some where around $4.00 for less than a mouthful. Melissa and Mike were smart. They got tea.

Margaret and I attended daily mass here at Santa Chiara (St. Clare's). Santa Chiara was about a 5-7 minute walk from our hotel...going down hill. Going up was a different story. Here is a scenic pic of Assisi. You can see Santa Chiara in the distance here. The body of St. Clare is displayed in this church. Her body did not decompose so we could see her but no pictures were allowed. As with many of the churches, no pictures were allowed inside. I did sneak a few without a flash. Here is what I got.


This is Santa Maria di Angeli and one picture I took inside of a fresco on the ceiling.

Next is the Basilica of St. Francis. Believe it or not, I never got a picture of the basilica from the outside except for these double doors, guess i was preoccupied. There is a crypt in the lower level which holds the remains of St. Francis. His body was not preserved. Remember you can click on pictures to enlarge.