Panicale - one of the most beautiful villages in Italy

If you followed my blog last year you will have seen some of these photos before. This post is mainly directed at our CIS friends who might like to see our village.

Panicale is a fortified hilltop village and the very clever street design inside the walls kept the village safe against marauders - concentric circles have created a picturesque plan. This map shows the oldest part of the village.

This view of the village was taken from one of our favourite walking paths.

This is one of the two gates through the wall - Porta Fiorentina. This is where our car stays when we are not using it as parking space is at a premium.

Porta Perugina is at the opposite end of the wall. The arched gateway at the extreme left is where we stayed last year.

Immediately inside Porta Perugina is Piazza Umberto I, the centre of all that happens in Panicale. 

The view from Aldo's Bar Gallo, just the spot for an evening Aperol or prosecco!

The fountain is a much used centrepiece for the village. It can be a seat, a display area, a stage, play area or decorative focus in the Piazza.

Looking from the second Piazza, San Michele towards Piazza Umberto I.

One of the little streets that lead to the main Piazza

The third Piazza Masolino is at the highest point of the village and the Podestà is the dominant landmark here.

The view from the Belvedere towards Lago Trasimeno

A good spot for capturing sunset shots across the lake

This year our villa is a short distance from the wall. This is the view from our terrazzo, if we look left.

At present we are experiencing a thunderstorm with some lightning, wind and a few drops of rain. It has dropped the temperature to 29 degrees so it's not all bad.

We have spent several hours today studying our language text and doing i compiti. We are intrigued that we have learnt so much in such a short time. We seem to be analysing the grammar in many things we read and especially in things people say to us. Now we know the difference between grazie, grazie a Lei and grazie a te. 

Most interesting to us is the sign Vendesi. Commonly found on old wrecks for sale, for the last 17 years we have joked that when we win tattslotto we will buy one of those Vendesi. Now it looks to us like a reflexive and that means we know how to pronounce it correctly as well.