About the city and the twinning
About Umbria
Umbria is a landlocked region in central Italy, made up of the provinces of Perugia and Terni. Its capital, Perugia, stands on a hill overlooking the Tiber Valley and retains much of its historic character, including its city walls. The region’s landscape ranges from wooded hills and river valleys to Lake Trasimeno and the Marmore Falls near Terni.
Umbria’s cultural heritage is closely associated with its historic hill towns. Assisi is known for its Franciscan heritage, and the Basilica of San Francesco and other Franciscan sites were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2000. Other historic centres include Gubbio, Orvieto and Spoleto, where longstanding craft and food traditions remain part of local life.
Relations with Bethlehem
The Cooperation Agreement between Umbria and Bethlehem has resulted in the development of a bond between the two localities in fields of tourism and cultural exchange. In November 1997 the Mayor of Bethlehem visited Umbria, and this was reciprocated by a visit from a delegation from Umbria to Bethlehem in June 1998. During the year 2000, and celebrations of the birth of Jesus, there were several initiatives between the two localities. These included a donation of 10,000 USD by the Italian Coordination of Local Authorities for Peace, for the creation of the Bethlehem Municipality website.
Bethlehem also hosted the ‘Italian Week in Palestine’ in September 2000, which included visits by a delegation from Umbria and the Italian Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs. The week included a range of cultural celebrations including a food festival, live music, a choir, a kite workshop and sports performances. In 2004 a high level delegation from Umbria visited Bethlehem and the West Bank under the framework of the ‘Fiaccola di San Benedetto’ peace initiative.
The Cooperation Agreement between Bethlehem and Umbria aims to promote the development of tourist infrastructure between the two localities, in addition to cultural exchange and leisure. The agreement also aims to increase knowledge exchange in the field of socio-cultural affairs, and establish joint ventures between small and medium sized firms and service organizations.