Bagni di Lucca and Beyond

I have been to Urbino in Le Marche and I loved it. After the fabulous Palio della Rana in Fermignano we went on to nearby Urbino. Le Marche is one of the less known regions of Italy, but it shouldn’t be. The countryside is stunningly beautiful and there are some gorgeous towns to visit. It is on the eastern side of Italy, south of Venice with a sea border on the Adriatic Coast.

The imposing Ducal Palace was our first view of the city.

We parked in the car park below in Borgo Mercatale. We saw this old entrance and almost walked into town through here.

We checked the address of our accommodation and realised it was close to the lift up from the car park. Urbino is on top of a steep hill and most streets offer an uphill or downhill climb, so the occasional lift is welcome.

The view from the town is wonderful.

We dropped our bags off at our accommodation and went out to forage for dinner. After wandering around  for a while we settled on a restaurant almost below our apartment in Via Giuseppe Garibaldi.

The people were so chatty and friendly I forgot to photograph the food, which was excellent.

The next morning we had breakfast in the big caffe in Piazza della Republica before heading off to explore.

The Ducal Palace was closed as it was a Monday, but I visited on my last visit…see here…Palazzo Ducale Urbino

The Duomo, which was closed on my previous visit was open after renovations. This amazing door at the side of the church invited us for a closer look.

The interior is beautiful. I love the pale green and white colours throughout the elegant building.

We found the Botanical Garden open.

The entrance is stunning.

The garden is quite small, but is packed with interesting plants. I especially loved the peonies which were at the end of blooming.

Next stop was the birthplace Urbino’s most famous son, Raffaello. Raffaello Sanzia da Urbino, known as Rafael was born in 1483 and died young in 1520. He was a painter and architect of the High Renaissance. I have been to his house before, but Jim had not. I was happy to visit again. There are lots of photos from my previous visit here…Urbino, perfect Renaissance city

He was a handsome fellow. The fresco below is on a wall in the house and is said to be an early work of the artist.

By now it was lunch time. We found the excellent Enoteca Tempo in Via Raffaello, not far from the artist’s house.

Our next visit was to the Oratorio di San Giuseppe in Via Barocci 42. It is filled with masterpieces from the Renaissance to the Neoclassical. The frescoes in the Baroque church are incredible and the marriage chapel next door has the oldest copy of a Raffaello painting.

Close by is the Oratorio de San Giovanni Battista filled with the spectacular frescoes by the brothers Lorenzo and Jacopo Salimbeni. The series of paintings was completed in 1416 and are well preserved.

There is more on this on my previous post…Urbino, perfect Renaissance city

I did miss this grim chap in the previous post.

We walked up the hill to the viewing areas at the top of the town. There is a park with a statue of Raffaello.

Further on, past an interesting church housing a copy of Raffaello’s tomb, is the Fortezza Albornoz, constructed in the second half of the 14th century.

There are spectacular views over Urbino.

There are lots of interesting shops to visit in Urbino. Castelli in Aria was full of delightful art pieces by this lovely signora. She didn’t want me to photograph her shop, but did allow a photo of her. You can find her on Facebook…Castelli in Aria Urbino.

The next morning we had breakfast at a charming cafe in Via Bramante. This would be my local bar if I lived in Urbino.

The shop next door was filled with delectable goodies from the area. We stocked up on a few items.

 

There are so many reasons to visit Urbino. It is a charming town with exceptionally well preserved buildings, great places to eat and shop, lots of walking…a delight around every corner.

Our accommodation was excellent, Urbino Apartments. It was a spacious apartment located in the centre of town. I wish we could have stayed longer.

Urbino is a place I would like to visit often. Next time we will stay longer and explore some nearby towns.