Orvieto

We rose on the morning of our last day in Rome to find our clothes still not dry. Nonetheless, we were on a schedule that morning, so we packed up and headed to the train station, where we met my parents, in from Birmingham that morning. We all got on the train and headed to Orvieto. Orvieto is a little hill town in Umbria, south of Tuscany. It is somewhat known for its wine. We arrived in Orvieto around noon, and took the funicular to the top of the hill. We then caught a small bus to one of the piazzas, where we got out and walked to our B&B for the night. I have to say that the B&B Casa Vera (look it up if you’re ever staying in Orvieto) was wonderful. Our host, Sabrina, was very friendly and helpful, and the place was beautifully decorated. We spent the remainder of the afternoon wandering the town, looking out across the countryside and exploring.

One of the wonderful things about hill towns is that they are so peaceful, especially when compared to the big cities. There is a different pace of life, and although there are certainly tourists around, there isn’t the feel that everything is a big tourist trap. The vistas out across the countryside are incredible, and each town has its own little surprises in store for those who decide to visit. Orvieto is also somewhat known for its duomo, but honestly, I think I enjoyed the quaint little alleyways, small streets, and the views almost as much, although it is somewhat surprising to round the corner in a small little town and find an astonishing building standing there.

We were looking for a place to eat, but as it was mid-afternoon by this point, most of the places were closed until the evening, so we got gelati instead. This time I tried the stracciola – I’m not really sure what was in it, but it was some sort of berry thing. Michelle had the limone. Dalton had the usual vaniglia, while Maggie had the limone as well. After a day of exploring, we ended up in a little restaurant, whose name I can’t quite remember: Il Pombano, or something like that. Pasta again – although I definitely was not complaining – the food was the best we had had in Italy to date. Dalton and Maggie were so worn out by this time that they actually fell asleep in the restaurant. We made our way back to our B&B and discovered that Dalton was running a fever. We did have some medicine though, so we gave him some and called it a night.