After arriving in Civitavecchia (the port for the city of Rome) we set out on a different journey. We traveled with a group of 20 of our fellow voyagers into Umbria to the medieval fortified city of Orvieto. Orvieto is an ancient city (predating even the Romans) built on a volcanic plain and rising to a couple of thousand feet. Following a miracle performed by a certain St. Peter of Prague in the 14th century, a Pope ordered that a magnificent Gothic cathedral be built to commemorate the miracle. It took 300 years, but the Duomo stands now as one of the most beautiful Gothic cathedrals. The outer walls are covered with splendid mosaics and bas relief sculpture. In addition to stained glass windows there are many made of thinly sliced alabaster. It is truly a masterpiece! The town is also known for its fine pottery and once again a pasta bowl and platter caught our eyes so our collection is growing.
We had lunch in a traditional Umbrian trattoria and dined on the world-famous specialty of the area – coniglio a la estruscano. It was a delicious spiced rabbit braised with lots of herbs, black olives and some sausage. It was very tasty. After a long walk down the hill we boarded our bus to return to the ship. Along the way as we passed through the countryside of Umbria and Lazio we saw other medieval towns perched on hillsides and old farmhouses. We also saw the very intact remains of old Roman aqueducts. The country is alive with history!
The top picture is of a pile of cheese in Orvieto, and the bottom picture is the façade of the Duomo in Orvieto.
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