Gubbio Shopping

The bookshop Fotolibri in Corso Garibaldi might be the biggest one in Gubbio and certainly the non-local would see or find rather quick (Corso Garibaldi is one of Gubbio’s main streets), but when it comes to attitude, there is much room for improvement. Maybe because I was the foreigner with not that much Italian expression skills, maybe she had a bad day, maybe... maybe.
But during my long stay in Residenza Via Picardi I had long chats with other guests and we exchanged ideas, suggestions and also recommendations about books and stores. One Swizz couple had a book about parks in Umbria, surprisingly in German language. They said that they bought it at Fotolibri, but they must have picked the last piece because when I went there an hour later, it was no longer available. When I asked if she could order it, she said, that it will most probably be sold out. A couple of days later, David (a nice hiker from Utah) showed me a hiking map of Gubbio’s surroundings which he bought at Pienini Cartolibreria and he mentioned that they were extremely helpful. Since I wanted to buy this map anyhow with the help of my Italian teacher Edvige we checked at Pienini and were positively surprised how much effort they made to find the Umbria park book for me. They phoned several other bookshops they are connected to and finally found it in a shop in Foligno. One week later it arrived, Edvige was informed and I could pick it up.

Directions:
Via Reposati is the south-westernmost street in quartiere San Pietro (inside the city walls) and the shop is located near San Pietro’s main piazza (with chiesa San Pietro). Either walk through the gate Porta Vittorina and turn left into Via Reposati or walk east from Piazza Quaranta Martiri into Via Mazzalini (= where Hotel Oderisi is located) and follow the street. It leads into Via Reposati.
Be aware that the shop sign can be easily overlooked!

Libreria Pienini on Google Maps.

© Ingrid D., July 2010 (just in case, RickS or others come along and think they can steal texts).

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Again I was grateful to have had the mini-apartment at Residenza di Via Piccardi and to be able to use the kitchen. Pasta Fresca Il Matterello was another magnificent discovery. They make fresh pasta with passion, and yes, the passion tastes through their pasta. They are specialised in the typical pasta of the region, such as fazzoletti ripieni (fazzoletto is the red bandana, all locals wear during the Festa dei Ceri), umbricelli, strozzapreti and of course fresh gnocchi. I also realised that they make a filling with fresh lemons, but on the day I was there they were already sold out. Next time!
I bought gnocchi and small ravioli with ricotta and can definitely say that the result was better than in most restaurants I had pasta so far. This was not because of my cooking but because of their marvellous pasta.

The shop is closed on Mondays.

Directions:
Well, this is a bit of walking without car since the shop is located in the outskirts. From the parking at Teatro Romano, walk south-west (Viale Paruccini), take the first to your right (Via dell’Arboreto) and walk straight on. Pass a roundabout, continue straight on, pass under Gubbio’s bypass road (SS219), and turn into the ground of what looks like a small industrialised zone on your right (name: Centro Polifunzionale "Arboreto"). This all must be very new since it is not yet visible on Google Maps.

Pasta Fresca Il Matterello on Google Maps.

© Ingrid D., July 2010 (just in case, RickS or others come along and think they can steal texts).

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This is one magnificent shop. Here I can stock up with delicious Umbrian specialities for the “dull” days to come back in Germany. Cecilia’s La Buca del Tartufo shop is specialised in local delicatessen and oh my god, it is so worth to go here for shopping! It is a family owned business, father Fausto and dog go out for truffle hunting in the season, mother, father and Cecilia’s sister take care of the gardens in Gubbio’s farmland, harvest the goods and prepare them at home and Cecilia is in charge of the shop in Gubbio. The shop is a pure heaven for lovers of good and solid Italian food and slow food, albeit vegetarians might get a slight shock in view of the many big ham pieces dangling from the ceiling. But then, the animals are definitely well looked after before they are turned into produces. Cecilia will happily explain and also offer bits and pieces to try of their goods. We had a wonderful panino each with delicious ham and then it took ages until I was able to decide what I will buy. I had to go back by plane, so I was limited in weight and didn’t want to (or could) take too many glasses with me. Finally I decided to buy two cheeses which were matured with a Sagrantino crust, four little sausages from wild boar and another four of pork which was fed with herbs and a big piece of ham (1 kg). I also could not resisit to buy two glasses of confettura di cipolle rosse (jam of red onions), 200 g each. The bill for all, including the two panini, came to 40 €, which I see as a bargain given that I bought fresh produces without any chemical treatment.

The moral to this is: even if there are shops very near the main touristic spots in Gubbio, it is better to go off the trotted paths and look for authentic shops. La Buca del Tartufo is certainly one of them. I look forward to come in May with a car and be able to buy more, including olive oil in these beautiful decorated canisters. This was maybe the hardest part when I was in Cecilia’s shop in Nov. 2009, that I could not buy this olive oil. But it would have made a mess in my backpack…

In the meantime I bought olive oil and it is indeed one of the best I ever had, tastes soft and does not leave any other flavour in my mouth or in the dish. Somehow I was too occupied with all that happened during my May trip that I completely forgot to stock up with litres of oil. But I will have time enough once I have found this little apartment.

La Buca del Tartufo on Google Maps.

© Ingrid D., November 2009 (just in case, RickS or others come along and think they can steal texts), update July 2010.

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When I came back to Gubbio in autumn, I was lucky to be able to try one of the typical seasons’ specialities. My Italian teacher Edvige told me about the fave dei morti (translates into beans of the dead) and that they are a typical pastry for All Souls Day (Nov 2). The little shop with the best fave dei morti is called Le Betulle and is located just a few metres northwest of Piazza Quaranta Martiri in Via Cavour. As soon as I entered this shop I was greeted with a delicious aroma of fresh baked products and saw that they had a big selection of fave dei morti. They came in flavours of wild berries, pistaccio, almonds (the typical one), lemon and many more. I could not help but buy 200 g of almost each flavour, which was good since they kept us well-fed during the next lessons. My favourites though were the wild berry ones. And they were very reasonable, 200 g for 1,40 €.
I come back to the shop anytime when I am in Gubbio for some delicious latte macchiato, caffè or bread and in October I saw these cute cakes in their refrigerator (see photos). They were just normal cakes with cream but decorated with the loveliest toadstools made of meringue and coloured red and dots of sugar pieces. Oh my, I had to resist buying one of these since it would have been too much for me.

In May they had another set of meringue pastry, this time ceraioli, the ones who carry the Ceri during the festivals (see local custom). Somehow I forgot to take a photo, but surely next year.

Le Betulle on Google Maps.

© Ingrid D., November 2009 (just in case, RickS or others come along and think they can steal texts), update July 2010.

Anyone who is also captured by the spirit of Gubbio or in general interested in the marvellous traditions of the city and its history should look for books and DVDs. Luckily there are many available which cover not only the traditions but also the history and especially the one of San Francesco (St. Francis), for whom his stay in Gubbio was a very important stage in his life. The best bookshop for these kinds of books and DVDs is Libreria Fotolibri, in Corso Garibaldi.
The best book I bought here is certainly the one about Gubbio’s campanari and the campanone (the one in my picture): Campanari, I Maestri del Silenzio. With 42 Euro it is not cheap but it is a piece of art. Already the book cover itself is artwork, longish, red (colour of the campanari), an opening which resembles the opening in the torretta with the campanone. Written with passion, magnificent photos and composition it also includes a DVD about Gubbio and the campanari ringing the bells. Video shootings and assembly have been made of course by Giampaolo Pauselli, a god in catching the atmosphere. I have no idea how he managed to take these videos, since it involved hair-rising climbing to mount the camera. But the result is simply marvellous. He is a master in combining special angles, cross-fading and unusual close-ups, shows emotions and on top, his selection of background music and sounds is second to none! Watching the DVD certainly helps me to get over the days until I am back.

Other books which are available there are one about San Francesco’s life and descriptions of the places in Gubbio which are of importance in connection with him and then of course many books about Gubbio’s most famous festival, Ceri. The majority of books are in Italian though, but one about Ceri is bilingual (English and Italian) so that it perfectly helps anyone travelling here to understand this festival, its schedule, the colours and other attributes. There is also a thick book with photos of the Ceri festival of 2008, including a video. I have bought the video (90 minutes), again with contribution by Giampaolo Pauselli and would even suggest that this is the best video about Ceri. Usually, a DVD is available from every year, but somehow 2008 was special.
Other books which are available are about other festivals and events (although none about Palio della Balestra, but someone will work on that!), arts and history and other tourism related books.

© Ingrid D., July 2010 (just in case, RickS or others come along and think they can steal texts).