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| Our ship comes in... |
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| Our Opel Corsa in the belly of the beast... |
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| View of Villa San Giovanni in Calabria in the distance... |
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| Chris sitting in the shade on the top deck... |
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| View of Messina Harbor as our ship sailed away... |
Once we disembarked the ferry in Villa San Giovanni, it was about a three hour drive to our overnight stay at Residenza Ceramiche in Montalto Uffugo. The next day we drove six hours through parts of Calabria, Basilicata, Campania, and Lazio, to reach our destination of Orvieto in Umbria. We saw amazing scenery, countless bridges and tunnels...
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| Snow-capped mountains... |
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| The roads are in great condition... |
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| Many...many...many tunnels... |
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| 85 mph through the tunnels, and they become a video game... |
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| The light at the end of the tunnel... |
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| One of many hill towns seen along the way... |
On this visit to Orvieto we stayed at La Finestra Sul Duomo, a deluxe apartment on sweet-sounding Vicolo dei Dolci, just a few meters from Piazza Duomo. There is no better location or accommodation in Orvieto....
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| Modern kitchen... |
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| Desk and sitting area... |
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| Vicolo dei Dolci, draped in Camellia and Wisteria... |
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| Our arched apartment door, just in front of the vehicle... |
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| Morning view of the Duomo from our apartment... |
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| And in late afternoon, when the centuries-old mosaics seem ablaze in the setting sun... |
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| Stepping through the arch in Piazza Duomo into Vicolo dei Dolci is stepping into a world of peace and tranquility... |
From the Duomo, to the ancient Church of San Giovenale; from the medieval rooftops to the quaint alleys, Orvieto is spectacular....
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| Duomo of Orvieto, construction began in the 13th century... |
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| ....was finished in the 16th century.... |
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| San Giovenale, dates to the 11th century... |
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| Frescoes inside San Giovenale... |
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| Even the columns had frescoes... |
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| A Strapping old column... |
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| The frescoes are preserved... |
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| Rooftops in the Medieval quarter... |
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| Beautiful Courtyard... |
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| Intricate old hanging lights... |
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| Typical narrow alley... |
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| It was a huge TV production... |
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| Waiting in line to get in...at least it was free... |
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| Inside the Duomo, just before the start... |
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| RaiUno cameraman... |
The good news is that there was a lot more music during the week, and all of it was a surprise to us. The first encounter happened late one morning, as we walked into Piazza Duomo from our apartment. We stopped in the Tourist Information Office to ask if there were any events in town that day. Ms. Grumpy said no, there was nothing. As we stepped out of the office into Piazza Duomo, we could hear a marching band approaching the Duomo. Soon the Shaker Heights Ohio marching band appeared! The band, parents, and chaperones - over three hundred of them - were on a week-long trip to Italy, performing in several locations. I guess Ms. Grumpy didn't get the memo...surprising how unhelpful these Tourist Info Offices are. Anyway, the band performed a wonderful concert right in front of the Duomo....
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| There was a threat of rain, so they didn't wear their uniforms... |
The next music surprise came a day later, as we were joining in the evening passeggiata. Passing one of the larger cafes, we could hear live music inside. A local combo was playing jazz and blues. We had a glass of wine and listened to a few numbers. They were quite good, the singer had a great voice....
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| Fuzzy cell phone photo... |
The next day, while walking to the supermarket, we heard yet another marching band. This was a local band and flag twirling group, that, like the Shaker Heights band, marched up to the Duomo and performed a show....
One day we did a road trip out to Lake Balsena, and on the way back stopped at Boccone del Prete in Porano for lunch. We've been to this place before, it is a classic, and always a bit odd. This time was no different. We were the only people in the place for a good while, until another couple came it. We asked for a couple of things on the menu, but they didn't have them...what they had was a big honkin' steak. We said OK...Joe watched the chef cut the steak, Chris gave it the evil eye, but we had a great lunch.....
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| I would like the Fred Flintstone cut, please.... |
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| Uhhh...really....? |
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| 700 grams, or about 1.5 lb..... |
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| Yum...! |
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| The restaurant is carved out of a cave, great atmosphere... |
And of course you must have dessert. There are wonderful pasticcerie (pastry shops) in Orvieto, and we found a few of them. They wrap your purchases as if they were a precious gift....which in a sense they are....
To stay in Orvieto, you must park in Orvieto. We know of a secret little parking lot near the Duomo (if we told you where it was, we'd have to.... well you know). With the discount negotiated by Valerie, who owns the apartment we rented, it is 12 euros per day to park there. They hand-write a ticket for each day you are there, and also for each partial day, and also print a receipt for each day, and then staple all the pieces together to make a large puzzle....
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| For four days of parking... |
The alternative is to park here....just follow the signs, interpret the pictographs, and remove your car the first Friday of each month from 8 am to 10 am for parking lot cleaning....
But maybe the best thing about returning to Orvieto is re-connecting with Cristian. He owns Gastronomia Aronne Orvieto, a gourmet wine, meats, and cheese shop next to Trattoria Del Moro Aronne, which is owned by his mother. Last year, when we told Cristian that we had been married for 48 years, his immediate response was...Why? That response has become family legend. This year, when we reminded him that we had now been married 49 years.... Cristian gave us a bottle of the restaurant's house wine, and wrote on it...."The same question...Why?"
I guess the answer is... so we can keep returning to Orvieto!
Click on any photo to enlarge....
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