Orvieto

Welcome back to sharing my adventures in Italy. I took the train outside of Rome for the first time today and am pleased to announce that I didn't get lost even once. No problem. Walk 15 minutes to bus #8. Take the bus to Trastevere train station. Take train to Tiburtina train station. Get on train to Orvieto. Take train 1 hour and 10 minutes. Exit train, cross the street, buy ticket and board the funicolor (sort of like a cable car) for the ride up to Orvieto. Voila - two and a half hours after leaving the apartment............ Welcome to Orvieto. The trainitalia trains are very nice -- clean and quiet riding. It was quite relaxing. I had visited Orvieto last year by car and, entering this year via funicolor took me in the opposite side of the city so I was pleasantly surprised at seeing part of the city I didn't see last year. As always, it wasn't easy choosing which pictures to share with you. For some reason I really love laundry and stair shots, so you have to be exposed to them. The town is primarily medieval in style. I brought my guidebook from last year and used it to guide me through the town once again. It is peaceful and beautiful.
The roads are very narrow and it seems strange to realize that people live here and go about their jobs, school, and lives in the midst of this beauty. There are plants and flowers lining every stairway and pouring from window boxes throughout the city. The main contrast from this city and Rome and Capena (where I stayed last year) is the total absence of graffiti. Italians are very expressive and like to express themselves with spray cans wherever there is an opportunity to

do so. On trains, walls, doors, sidewalks, etc. I actually use the graffiti to help me find my way sometimes! But in Orvieto, there is none. Possibly because they are supported by tourism.

I really like this picture of an alleyway - a vicolo; which means small street. The stone of the walls and slate roofs surrounded by all the plants speaks to me. I enjoy the rooftops in these small cities. These type places always make me think of what Florida and its attractions make copies of to attract tourists. And yet, here is the original medieval city. I know I'm prattling on, but I really enjoy visiting this city.


The cathedral is breath-taking and it constantly frustrates me that there is no place to stand and get a picture of the entire building in one shot. It's simply too big. The colors on the front actually gleam in the sun. There are paintings upon paintings inside and I focused on a set of paintings in a "small" (compared to the main cathedral) chapel on the right side of the front of the cathedral. There are a series of paintings on the walls by Luca Signorelli that follow his vision of the end times. Preaching of the Antichrist; End of the World; Resurrection of the Flesh; The Damned are taken to Hell; The Elect Being led to Paradise by Angels. The images are captivating. Regardless of your beliefs, it's difficult not to be drawn into the scenes. They almost come alive. I didn't notice them before, so it was a new experience for me.





This last picture was in a different church and I loved the way I could see the rays of the sun pouring into the window.

After taking the previously mentioned means of transportation home again, I relaxed for a bit, got dressed up (yep, stocking, dress, heels - the whole thing) and took myself out to dinner at a restaurant around the corner from my apartment. It was fine, but sad. At home it doesn't bother me to go out alone, but it just seems wrong to eat alone in Italy. I think I'll save my solo eating for lunch when there are tons of people milling around and cook dinner for myself at home. I did learn a new word today...... when you have on narrow heels and walk along the cobblestones they become........wait for it.......... HOBBLESTONES! (I made that up) As much as I tried walking on the balls of my feet, my heels would slip between the cobblestones and I would sort of hobble. So, from now on, cobblestones will forever in my mind be hobblestones.

Italy Day 8 - Orvieto

Bueno Sera! It's a clear, cold evening here in Capena. A crisp ending to a truly phenomenal day. It was about an hour drive in the rain up the autostrada to Oriveto. The rain ended just as I was entering the city. I parked in a parking garage, figured out how to manipulate the ticket, walked up (always up) lots of stairs, and entered the city. Wow! This first picture is of the cathedral, which was begun in 1290 on the foundations of an Etruscan temple. I wish I had been able to take a photograph that adequately conveys its size and glory. It is truly an amazing structure. Take a minute and notice the group of people on the bottome left side of the photo -- it will give you some indication of how enormous this building is. I took some photos of the front later in the day when the sun was reflecting off the gold in the paintings and it truly glowed.

This is one photo of the inside of the cathedral. There are 144 chairs set up in front of the altar. Behind the altar are numerous paintings on the walls and about 24 stained glass depictions in the center. My neck got sore from straining to see all the way up at the paintings and sculptures inside.

I just love all of the intricate round windows I've seen on many of the churches here in Italy. So much work on a seemingly insignificant part of the buildings. This particular one was in the church of Sant'Andrea.

This is one of the windows in the cathedral.

This is one of the many pictures of the walkways in Orvieto.

I took 96 pictures today and still only captured a fraction of what I saw. I bought a very informative guide book to Orvieto and it had itineraries which I followed throughout the city. It gave great tidbits and interesting facts that I would have missed. I spent about 5 hours here and could have easily stayed busy for 2 days learning about its history and seeing the many churches and museums. There is even an underground tour available which I didn't have time to take advantage of.

When I was talking with Pucci last night, while she was giving me ideas of places to visit, she said I could stay 2 months and still not see all there is to see right in this region -- let alone all of Italy. I certainly believe her. When my 2 weeks is finished, I will go home with tons of pictures, untold memories, and the knowledge that I've barely seen a small portion of what there is here.

After my day in Orvieto, I got home, walked to the butcher and ordered a chicken breast, which he sliced very thinly for me. I dipped it in an egg/milk mixture and coated it with some bread crumbs (which I made, thank you very much) combined with shredded fontini cheese, salt and pepper. I cooked it in olive oil and served it with spaghetti that I tossed in equal parts olive oil and melted butter seasoned with garlic and pepper. Stupendous!

I plan to read for a little bit, then head off to bed because I plan to get an early start tomorrow. Thanks for visiting with me again.