Visit Date: May 2, 2019, at approximately 11 a.m.
The first destination on May 2, the second day of the first year of 2049, is Urbino, an old town in the Marche region. It takes about an hour from Montaigne, where we stayed the night before. Urbino is a very beautiful city, which is chosen as a world heritage site, and it is located a little bit inland of Marche, so the traffic seems to be not so convenient. If you drive, it doesn’t matter much… The nearest place of interest is San Marino, but it takes a surprisingly long time to get there from San Marino. The geography is as follows.
I think this day was the best weather of the trip. Really nice weather. The best place to park in Urbino is the larger public parking lot outside the city, right near the entrance. It’s at the bus depot so it’s easy to find. You can park here without worry. You can enter the old town through this gate from the immediate vicinity.
Urbino has been a city of art since the Middle Ages, and is also the birthplace of Raphael, one of the masters of the Renaissance. The city of Urbino is like a museum in itself. Every building is as beautiful as a work of art. I’ve seen many Italian cities, but this one has such a unique atmosphere that I can’t think of any other similar city.
It’s a great city to just walk around and enjoy. It’s also a great place to visit because it’s so small.
There is a house where Raphael was born, though it can only be seen from the outside.
The beauty of the city and its famous painters and architects can be attributed to the good government and artistic patronage of Duke Federico of Montefeltro and his son Guidobaldo, who ruled the area in the 15th century.
Highlights are the Duomo and Palazzo Ducale, located in the city’s central square.
There was some kind of art event going on in this square. It might be a proof that artistic tradition is still inherited in this city. It looked like a lot of fun.
Unfortunately, we couldn’t visit Duomo because it was under renovation when we visited. But we could visit Palazzo Ducale. Inside is the National Marche Museum.
You would think that the collection would be splendid because this is the city that gave birth to Raphael and Bramamante, but actually it is not, and although it is not so bad, many masterpieces including the important Raphael’s paintings were taken to France when Napoleon occupied this city! ….
For some reason, there was an exhibition of Foucault’s pendulum.
Is the masterpiece still in the Louvre? I have mixed feelings about this. I think it would be nice to give it back to him.
By the time we left the museum, the drawing event at the front was over.
Well, Urbino is more hilly than I thought it would be. But as I said before, it’s not a big place, so you can walk from the center of the city to the hill with a great view of the whole city in about 5 minutes. This is the hill seen from the center. At first glance, it looks like a long distance, but it is not so.
However, you will have to work hard to climb the hill.
The view from here is amazing and a must visit place.
It seems that there are several places with spectacular views, but this time we only went to the hill on the other side of the river, which seemed to be the closest to the center.
The town is relatively small and there are not so many sights to see, but it is not an exaggeration to say that the town itself is a work of art, and the World Heritage Site recognition was well deserved. If I have a chance to visit again, I would like to stay overnight and try to eat local food and walk around the city at night.
