Route 1 - In the "Footpaths of Saint Bridget"

Naples/Farfa/Assisi - 6 days/5 nights

1° day - Arrival in Naples in the afternoon. Lodging in the House at Camaldoli. Dinner and overnight stay.

2° day - Whole day guided tour of Naples: Piazza del Plebiscito. Palazzo Reale. Maschio Angioino. Piazza del Municipio. Visit to the Church of Saint Bridget and Celebration of the Holy Eucharist (The Church is frescoed with scenes from the Saint’s life and conserves a reliquary of the Saint). Museum of Capodimonte. Piazza dei Martiri. The Riviera of Chiaia. The heights of Posillipo from where one can enjoy a wonderful panorama of the Bay of Naples.
Full board in the House.

3° day - After breakfast departure from Naples direction Farfa. Stop at Cassino for a visit to the Abbey, one of the major Benedictine monasteries in the world, founded by St Benedict in 530 and where the remains of the saint and of his sister Saint Scolastica are conserved. Stop for lunch in a local restaurant and departure for Farfa. Lodging in the Casa Brigidina. Tour of the Bridgettine complex and the Church of Santa Maria. Celebration of the Holy Eucharist. Dinner and overnight stay.

4° day - After breakfast departure from Farfa. Arrival at Rieti after a half-an-hour drive. Visit to the valley Santa Reatina, in the Franciscan spirit of the Poor Man of Assisi: Fonte Colombo (Colombo spring) where the Saint, already blind, dictated the final version of the “Rule”), the Foresta (the Forest) where the Saint is said to have been inspired to write the Cantico del Frate Sole or the Lode delle Creature (Canticle of the Creatures ), Poggio Bustone and Greccio (universally known because here Saint Francis re-enacted the holy night of Betlehem, during Christmas night of the year 1223, giving rise to the most beautiful Christian traditions, namely the Crib). Departure for Assisi. Lodging in the local Casa Brigidina.

5° day - Whole day tour of Assisi: Basilica of Saint Francis, Santa Chiara, Piazza del Comune, Rocca Maggiore (the Great Fort). In the afternoon, excursion to the Eremo delle Carceri (the Hermitage of the Prisons) where Saint Francis used to retire in prayer with his brethren, and the Church of Saint Damien (where a copy of the famous Crucifix that spoke to Saint Francis is conserved). In the evening, celebration of the Holy Eucharist in the Chapel of Saint Bridget at the Ecumenical Centre. Full board in the House.

6° day - Departure from Assisi. Stop at Santa Maria degli Angeli for a visit of the Basilica. Lunch and back to the starting point of the itinerary accompanied by the Bridgettine Sisters.

Naples: MASCHIO ANGIOINO: Castel Nuovo, known also as Maschio Angioino, built by Charles I of Anjou in 1279, towers with its majestic structure the harbour of Naples. It is considered as one of the most representative strongholds of the Angevin, Aragonese and Bourbon dynasties. Naples: The EREMO DEL SANTISSIMO SALVATORE (Hermitage of the Most Holy Saviour) was founded in 1585 on a hill 485 metres high and from where one can enjoy a wonderful view of Naples and the peninsula of Sorrento.

Assisi: The EREMO DELLE CARCERI (The Hermitage of the Prisons) was originally a small chapel which the Benedictine monks had given to Saint Francis. Surrounded by a very thick forest made up mainly of oak trees, the original building consisted of a chapel dedicated to Our Lady with a very small choir. Here is also the cave where Saint Francis used to retire and pray.

Farfa: The Abbot Commendator Giovanbattista Orsini was responsible for the building of the ABBAZIA DI FARFA (The Abbey of Farfa). The construction was started in the beginning of the 1400 and lasted for 70 years. In 1496 the new basilica was consecrated.