You’ll Fall in love with Umbria’s fields of gold
The trees, to borrow from WB Yeats, are certainly heading into their autumn beauty right now, a transformation that undoubtedly enhances any landscape that you care to walk or drive through. Even the housing sprawl along the Southern Cross road that leads from Bray or Greystones, in Co. Wicklow, to the N11 looks better these days with the tree-lined road glimmering with colour – all those oranges and browns and russets lifting it beyond its suburban identity, and, on a sunlit morning, giving the vista a magical glow.
New England in the ‘Fall’ is well charted travel territory, of course, and it’s beautiful, and definitely well worth seeing.
As is Japan, because, although generally a place associated more with late spring cherry blossom, Japan is also stunning in the autumn. ‘Koyo’ is their word for the autumn leaves and you’ll still be able to see that stunning foliage in the south of Japan as late as the end of November.
But what if you don’t want to do long-haul in order to see some splendid autumn colour, and yet you want to go a bit further than Wicklow, or even the UK?
Well, if I was looking for the leaves this year I’d go to Umbria. It’s a lovely part of Italy at any time of the year and not as overblown as its Tuscan neighbour. And the thing about the autumn there is that, not only are you treated to the lovely colours in the region’s forests and parklands, but also in all those endless vineyards.
Essentially, come November and after the grapes have been harvested, what you have then are fields of gold. Yes, the vines themselves take on their autumn colours and for miles and miles, as you drive, you are treated to the lovely sight of fields that look like they have been painted red, or yellow or orange, or a mixture of all three. Stunning.
And then, on top of all that beauty, you have the delights of the region to explore.
I love Umbria, have loved it since I first spent some time there in and around Perugia way back in 1984. I have been back on a number of occasions and it has never disappointed.
It doesn’t have the big showy cities that Tuscany has, so you won’t find an equivalent of, say, Florence. But the upside of that is that when you do find somewhere that appeals to you, it won’t be so overrun with tourists.
It’s a landlocked region – but it does have Lake Trasimeno, one of the biggest lakes in all of Italy. In summer the towns around the lake become Umbria’s Riviera of sorts but, to be honest, it’s always been the hill towns that have most appealed to me – both in the summer and also out of season.
Places like Todi (once voted the best town in the world to live in!) or Spoleto. Or the smaller town of Montefalco, a 12th-century gem of a place. And although I have never actually visited Montefalco itself in autumn, it lies at the heart of a wine region (the sagrantino grape is unique to here) so I’d imagine that, come next month, it will be surrounded by those fields of gold.
Even if you choose to stay in the heart of the countryside you should make a day-trip to Perugia, the capital of Umbria. With a bit of urban sprawl in evidence, its medieval centre, however, is truly beautiful, and it’s a pleasant place to while away a few hours and take in the sights. And Assissi, the pinkstoned city of St Francis fame, is just up the road.
At this time of year, however, and with those autumn colours in the offing, I’d base myself in one of the hill towns.
Which one? Well, I have great affection for Todi because I first encountered it so long ago, but if I had to choose, right now, where to stay next month, I’d plump for Montefalco.
And its fields of gold. •Listen in on Thursdays as Ros talks travel with Ivan Yates on The Hard Shoulder, Newstalk 106-108fm, 4pm-7pm.