Blogs from Orvieto, Umbria, Italy, Europe - page 4

Monday, October 1, 2007 - Last day in Roma! Okay, let’s take stock and see what we HAVEN’T done here. The Appia Antica and catacombs and another outlet. And away we GO! Kevin and I expected the Catacombs to be like the ones in Paris, and they weren’t, at all. We only went into one, St. Sebastian, but it was very interesting to see the tomb rooms, and the burial niches, dating from the 3-4th Century. They were not hiding places for the Christians to escape persecution, but rather underground Christian cemeteries that were also safe havens as the Romans respected the dead, no matter what their religion. Another myth debunked! At any rate, we were able to get an English tour before they closed for lunch, and then went for a walk down the Appia. ... read more

Sunday, we had to get out of Roma. It's filthy, crowded, noisy, the people are rude, and the food is ho hum. So we hopped a local train to Orvietto, 1 hour away. We took a funiculare to the old city. This hillside town is the summer residence of many of the Popes and dates back to 800 BC when the Etruscans settled. The 13th century Duomo is one of Italy's most beautiful Duomi. It was built to shelter the relic of the Miracle of Bolsena, which happened in 1263 just south of Orvietto. A doubting priest who questioned the sacrement of the Transfiguration (the host contains the incarnation - the actual body and blood of Christ - for all you non Catholics) witnessed that the bleeding host had stained the linen altar cloth. The cloth ... read more

TA here - FINALLY. Seems my timing with the internet cafes has been as futile as my timing with the Italian siestas. If you are hungry anytime between 1 - 4, then forget it! These people have something going on here...they know when to get OUT OF THE HEAT! Today I am writing from Orvietto...an incredibly beautiful town perched atop a rock outcropping, accessible by a funky cable car that takes you straight uphill. Debe and I took a short side trip today into the town of Civita di Bagnoregio. This town has a population of 14. We had to hike up a bridge across a canyon to access the town, but it was well worth it. No one spoke any English. We had the best truffle bruschetta EVER and the owner made his own wine ... read more