We are taking another look at Todi in Umbria, Italy.
This is part three of our series on this wonderful hilltown, featuring all new scenes.
Spending some quality time on the main shopping street, and in the grand piazza, a fine place
to see the locals of all ages out playing, and strolling and talking with their friends.
It's the most historic part of town.
We will also walk along some of the interesting side streets.
Some lanes turn into staircases, because Todi is a hill town, and from different perspectives
you get great views looking out across the countryside.
You'll see a beautiful fountain right along the central part of the main shopping street
on the small Piazza Bartolomeo d’Alviano.
The eagle statue at the center is a symbol of the city of Todi.
Traditionally he's the bird that chose this location to build a city, with shops and pizzerias
nearby.
Todi only has one main shopping street.
Here it is called Corso Cavour, and a little bit lower down, it changes names to via Roma,
lined with very interesting shops for locals and visitors alike.
Coming out of the southeast corner of Piazza Del Popolo, you can't miss it.
This side lane connects Corso Cavour with via Mazzini, another one of the main streets
of town, and with a tempting sidewalk café.
Back on the main drag, it looks like you are in a pedestrian zone, but surprise, cars do
come through.
They drive very slowly in courtesy to the people walking, but this is one of the main
roads of town.
The streets were obviously laid out way before there was any automobiles, perhaps as far
back as the Roman times, and they were for pedestrians, and horses, and cows, and goats
and other animals, but now it's adapted to the modern world where we can have a mix of
cars and people.
Of course, being Italy, you will always find wonderful places to eat – pizza, pasta and
salad are the basics, accompanied by some local wine, perhaps at an outdoor terrace
that offers a spectacular view across the countryside.
Corso Cavour runs along the hillside ridge but you can easily walk down and get a different
view, looking straight across into the town itself, looking across the fertile farmlands
of the valley and then back up at the town.
Return up a convenient staircase and you're soon back on the main street again.
Let me tell you a bit more of the history.
It's an incredibly ancient city that goes back 3000 years, first founded in the dawn
of history by the Umbri, the native people of Umbria, and then later it was colonized
by the Romans.
And then in the Middle Ages it really prospered as a trading town and agricultural center.
There is fertile farmlands all around Todi, it's so picturesque.
You see the Apennine Hills in the distance where they are able to find truffles.
Some of the main crops here are corn for polenta, and grapes for wine.
Umbria is an amazing place.
Umbria is not as well-known as Tuscany, but it's very similar, equally beautiful, and
in some ways more charming because it's a little bit less crowded, a little bit less
touristic.
And it has these amazing towns: Perugia, Gubbio and Spoleto, and Spello and Assisi, the most
famous of Umbrian towns.
And then finally here we are in Todi, a spectacular place.
With many surprises, like public buses running through these narrow lanes, mass transit in
a medieval city, and the bus goes right through the oldest arch in town.
The arch seen here from the other side, is the only survival from the first original
wall that ran around Todi back in the Umbria-Roman days.
Notice the beautiful staircase ramp leading up the hillside next to the arch.
This is typical of the Umbrian and Tuscan hill town style of staircase on a slope – shallow
steps in the center surrounded by beautiful stonework that gives you an even path if you
prefer that route, perhaps for your baby buggy or shopping cart.
Now I'm going to take you on a walk off the beaten track into some little back lanes,
away from the shops and the main piazza, into the heart of the medieval town where people
still live.
It's a wonderful tangle of lanes, just a few blocks to the west of the main shopping lane
in the main piazza, that makes a lovely stroll through these alleys, passing these ancient
stone buildings.
You might get a little lost in here, but don't worry it's a small neighborhood, and it's
the kind of activity that you don't find in most guidebooks, a simple walk into an authentic
residential place, filled with the ancient charm of the Middle Ages.
And then after ten or fifteen minutes of wandering around, you'll probably find yourself, surprisingly,
back at the Piazza Del Popolo, the main square of town.
While cars are allowed to drive along the edge of the piazza, the main central part
of the square is reserved for pedestrians.
It functions like the outdoor living room and playground of the city with shops, cafes
and important public buildings all around it.
This was photographed during the month of November, which is the low season, so there
are really no tourists around.
It's strictly a place for the locals, considered to be one of the most beautiful medieval style
piazzas in the country, with its origins going back much earlier, to the Roman times and
perhaps even to the Umbrians, a thousand BC.
Because Todi is such an old city, built up over the centuries in a very dense residential
style, this is one of the only open spaces in the heart of town.
You can see how important the piazza is by the way they keep it so clean – every morning
it is scrubbed spotless.
And the flat paving stones are very smooth, and in and maintained so well that there is
no crack or broken bits to trip over.
The Cathedral rises at one end and on the right, those arches lead into the Palazzo
Del Popolo and Del Capitano.
These important government buildings date back to the twelfth and thirteenth centuries
when Todi became a very prosperous and independent commune.
Inside you'll find the official Tourist Information Office, which is a handy place to get some
free maps and brochures, get some information about restaurants and hotels, and ask about
what's a good route to go walking on while you're in the city.
And then, where should I walk?
From here, Corso Cavour, ok, or via Massini, uh-huh, or via del Duomo.
Todi's civic museum is located right upstairs, and it's fairly small, with about six galleries,
so as long as you're here, go on up and have a quick look around.
In this thirty-second summary you get a quick glimpse of some of the archaeology, the pottery,
the paintings, and the architecture inside this nice little museum.
They've got some old guns, cabinetry, a scale model of Todi's temple of Santa Maria della
consulates painted wooden statues from the Renaissance, and earlier Byzantine paintings.
And how about this old map of Todi, showing how little it's changed over the centuries,
and boasting prominence as a major Umbrian town.
I remind you we have two other videos about Todi that show you a lot more about the city,
with many walking tours through the various lanes, that present are complete picture of
this wonderful place.
Now I'd like to share some tips on the best way to arrive in Todi.
To get here, if you have a car, it's not so bad.
You can drive from Rome, for example, in an hour and 1/2.
And there is parking available outside the town, and then you could just walk right in
school repopulating is backpack to carry us see some things it small enough that.
It's very easy if you have a car.
If you don't have a car, you can also get here by bus or by train, but I'll show you
that arriving by bus is better than getting here by train, as much as I love to take trains.
Because the bus will take you right into Todi itself, so it is very convenient.
You can begin your sightseeing right away, and perhaps walk to your hotel.
But if you arrive by train, the rail station is a few miles outside of town and you need
a shuttle bus to get into the city.
When you get off the train at the Todi station, you wait at the bus stop.
Bus number C comes along, and you hop on, and it's a simple ride, takes about ten minutes
to get right into the historic center by public bus.
The hotel I'm staying at an Todi is called San Lorenzo Tre, and it's a small, charming,
four-star hotel, right next to the Duomo.
You couldn't be more central in the heart of medieval Todi.
And the hotel is more like a house.
There are singles and doubles and a larger room with a view in various price levels,
and a lovely breakfast is served each morning, and it's like you're part of a family when
you're staying at this charming little hotel.
And then the manager told us a little bit more about the hotel.
Welcome to the San Lorenzo Tre in Todi, Perugia in Italy.
My name is Simone.(Laughs) okay.
This is, uh, it's not a proper hotel.
This is a family house, because the owner, the original owner, are living here from three
generations.
We have six rooms, and, uh, very little.
And all of the photo, all of the furniture, the few seats, are of the family, the family
owner.
And it's very typical, very quiet, and most central hotel in Todi.
The hotel offers wonderful views from its terrace and from some of the rooms.
You might be lucky enough to look out on a lush scene.
And you're welcome to take a stroll in their private garden.
On the ground floor we have this garden.
In the side we can see the Apennine hills and the countryside.
Of course there are some other hotels in Todi.
There are bigger ones.
There are even smaller ones, so you have a bit of a choice of where to stay when you
come visit this town.
It is definitely worth spending a night or two in Todi because there is so much to see,
so much to do, and it's a little tricky getting here, so as long as you've gone to the effort
of finding Todi, drop anchor and stay put for a while, especially if you been watching
our three part series on Todi, you have seen there is much to discover.
Be sure to look for those other two episodes if you haven't found them yet, for the complete
picture of this wonderful old medieval town.
We've also got videos about other cities in Umbria, including Spoleto and Perugia.
Here's a brief sample, and you can find the complete movies in our collection.
We are taking you to the city of Perugia, in Umbria, in northern Italy, not so well
known as Rome or Florence, but lovely to visit.
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.
We are visiting Gubbio, which is one of the great medieval, stone towns of Italy.
We're in Umbria and we’re fortunate to be walking with Isabella who is going to take
us around and show us all of these great sights of this amazing town of Gubbio.
It's about 1000 years old but it has origins that go back 3000 years.
It's really got a lot of history.
I am Isabella.
I live in Gubbio.
I am born in Gubbio, and Gubbio is my town.
It's very, very beautiful.
You come with me for one walk in Gubbio.
It's okay?
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