Yesterday I posted about how St. Francis devised the first crèche in 1223 in Greccio. Since St. Francis was born and died in Assisi, and the papal church dedicated to him is in Assisi, it follows that Assisi would celebrate the Christmas season in a big way. Indeed it does.

Last December I was lucky enough to visit Assisi during the Christmas season, and the nativity scenes staged in the town are quite something! Here are some pictures. The first set are from at the basilica itself, outside the portal of the Upper Church:

It was a very misty day when I was in Assisi. It added to the atmosphere!

If you have visited the church of St. Francis in Assisi, you will know that there are actually 2 churches in one, the lower and upper churches. The following pictures are outside the portal to the Lower Church.

The next set of pictures are from the crèche scene in the center of Assisi, the Piazza del Comune:

And this final set of pictures is from the cathedral of Assisi, the church of St. Rufino: Here we have only the Annunciation scene played out, with Mary on the right and Gabriel on the left.