Found on Italia, the official website of the Italian State Tourism Board-enit.
They told tourists why we should visit the areas of Le Marche & Umbria. The article ended with these powerful words:
"...The Marches Umbria were populated civilised by native peoples, the Italic. ...In 90 BC the people of this city [Corfinium] rose against Rome, & made it the capital of their state, giving it a name destined to have a very long life- Italia. That ancient Italia was overwhelmed & defeated. But the name remained, & long outlived Roman power, to spread to the whole of Italy."
So, one might say that to visit Le Marche is to visit Italy!
There are no heavy industries in the region; instead, it is a service & artisan industry. There are about 2,000,00 people living here. We noticed that the people of the Le Marche have maintained a slow ritual of slow food, slow living, slow work..but NOT SLOW DRIVING!
We loved the small, medieval towns where time seemed to have stopped (Mondavio & Bachi, for example)
We loved the Cathedral of Ascoli Piceno, the Abbey of Tolentino; enjoyed the coastal city of Sirolo on the Conero peninsula. We were in awe of the walled cities such as Urbania, Camerino, Cagli, Bachi, Mondavio, Urbino....there are over 100 walled cities in the Le Marche!
We felt as if we had experienced the past once we left Le Marche. The people continue to make wine, farm the land, celebrate their city saints, enjoy their religious festivals; they pretty much try to live their lives as their families did in the past.
Although supposedly May, June, & September are the best times to go, we had wonderful weather in October. But, remember, mid-February to mid-April and mid-October to mid-December are usually the weddest months.
For those who are looking for natural beauty, Le Marche fits the bill! The inland mountain countryside has missed much of the excesses of the 20th century.
There is the region to the south admid the Monti Sibillini; then there are the Fransassi caves, spectacular limestone caves. Also theGola Del Furlo [Furlo Gorge] is southwest 10km from Fossombrone. A little stream called the CANDIGLIANO has spent aeons pounding out this steep gorge in this wild, rocky landscapd. A road has gone through the gorge since ancient times inform of a small tunnel cut into the rock in 217BC!
Also, even though most of the Adriatic coastline is flat, Monte Conero [south of Ancona] is the exception. It's a high limestone mountain that simply plunges into the sea. That's one of the reasons that we chose to stay in Sirolo.
In the north, the best mountain views are near Urbino and Urbania around the giant Monte Catria.
Known as the Tuscany of the Adriatic Coast, the Le Marche is a hidden jewel in the tourist industry.
