Breathtaking Italy. Where do I begin?
We did what every dutiful first time visitor to Rome would do. We came, we saw, and we swooned. Then we wanted to be far from the maddening crowd. So we took daytrips, and it was the best decision we made this holiday. We went to three "communes", towns, or villages as we would understand in English.
Tivoli
We took a train from Roma Tiburtina station to Tivoli. The ride wasn't long, although the frequency of the trains are irregular. It is best to check with Trenitalia before you make your trip out. That was our mistake, which gave us less time to see Tivoli. We had wished to visit Hadrian's Villa and Villa d'Este, and we only had time for Villa d'Este. Please don't mind if I keep repeating the word "breathtaking", because that's the only way to describe the gardens of Villa d'Este.
There is a blog which teaches us how to get to Villa d'Este from Rome, which was quite helpful for us.
We picked a really good day to arrive in Tivoli as well, because that was the day of the carneval, and the entire town had their children decked out in costumes, they had a procession of floats with lots of confetti thrown around. It was just such a great opportunity to get into town spirit.
Orvieto
If I had a lot of reserve money in the bank, I would have bought a property in Orvieto and stay there at least two months a year.
When we got there in the day, the whole town was empty, like a ghost town. Some small shops, restaurants and tourist attractions were opened. Orvieto is just so charming, quaint and quiet. Because it is located on the top of a cliff, it has picturesque views. There is not much traffic around there, so the air is very fresh, something we missed in Rome.
We had lunch there, in Etruscan style, which is different from the food we have been eating in Rome. On the menu were food like pigeon and rabbit. There was gnocchi with hare sauce. The food was simply wonderful. The gnocchi was the best we had this whole Italian holiday.
We could only grab the 7.23pm train, which meant we stayed in Orvieto until it got dark. By 6pm, this town which we thought was a ghost town came alive. People were on the streets, eat, drinking and talking to each other. The atmosphere was laid back and relaxed, the town feels safe and friendly. Give me wireless internet and an apartment or house with views out, I think I could live there quite comfortably.
Civita di Bagnoregio
Every part of the journey to Civita di Bagnoregio was so pretty. We took a train to Orvieto, and from the bus stop just outside of the train station, we took a Cotral bus to Bagnoregio. You should study the schedule of the bus carefully because if you miss a certain bus, you might have to take a taxi or stay the night in Bagnoregio.
We got there without a map, but intuitively, we tried to walk towards a cliff edge, and thankfully we were in the right direction. These towns are so small you never really get lost anyway. We walked across the pedestrian bridge and entered the old ancient Bagnoregio, where again, there were hardly any people, this being the non peak season.
We were invited by Fabrizio (I think that's his name, but I might be wrong), who owns a bruschetteria- and in there is a 1500 year old olive press, to have some bruschetta. He toasted the bread in his wood fire oven, topped them with organic olive salsa, truffle spread, grilled eggplants and pickled zucchini. Fabrizio presses his own olive oil, and makes his own wine. He engaged us in great conversation while we ate in what used to be a stable for his family's horses. Easily the best food we ever had, and I walked out slightly tipsy. He has a BnB, in case you ever miss the bus and have to sleep something. I'm sure his hospitality might make you want to stay longer.
So, when in Rome, don't just stick to Rome!
I have to say, this trip in this part of Italy has changed my perspective on how I should be travelling through this country. It is easy to travel around, and never only stay in the city, leave the city and you always see much more!
We did what every dutiful first time visitor to Rome would do. We came, we saw, and we swooned. Then we wanted to be far from the maddening crowd. So we took daytrips, and it was the best decision we made this holiday. We went to three "communes", towns, or villages as we would understand in English.
Tivoli
We took a train from Roma Tiburtina station to Tivoli. The ride wasn't long, although the frequency of the trains are irregular. It is best to check with Trenitalia before you make your trip out. That was our mistake, which gave us less time to see Tivoli. We had wished to visit Hadrian's Villa and Villa d'Este, and we only had time for Villa d'Este. Please don't mind if I keep repeating the word "breathtaking", because that's the only way to describe the gardens of Villa d'Este.
There is a blog which teaches us how to get to Villa d'Este from Rome, which was quite helpful for us.
We picked a really good day to arrive in Tivoli as well, because that was the day of the carneval, and the entire town had their children decked out in costumes, they had a procession of floats with lots of confetti thrown around. It was just such a great opportunity to get into town spirit.
Orvieto
If I had a lot of reserve money in the bank, I would have bought a property in Orvieto and stay there at least two months a year.
When we got there in the day, the whole town was empty, like a ghost town. Some small shops, restaurants and tourist attractions were opened. Orvieto is just so charming, quaint and quiet. Because it is located on the top of a cliff, it has picturesque views. There is not much traffic around there, so the air is very fresh, something we missed in Rome.
We had lunch there, in Etruscan style, which is different from the food we have been eating in Rome. On the menu were food like pigeon and rabbit. There was gnocchi with hare sauce. The food was simply wonderful. The gnocchi was the best we had this whole Italian holiday.
We could only grab the 7.23pm train, which meant we stayed in Orvieto until it got dark. By 6pm, this town which we thought was a ghost town came alive. People were on the streets, eat, drinking and talking to each other. The atmosphere was laid back and relaxed, the town feels safe and friendly. Give me wireless internet and an apartment or house with views out, I think I could live there quite comfortably.
Civita di Bagnoregio
Every part of the journey to Civita di Bagnoregio was so pretty. We took a train to Orvieto, and from the bus stop just outside of the train station, we took a Cotral bus to Bagnoregio. You should study the schedule of the bus carefully because if you miss a certain bus, you might have to take a taxi or stay the night in Bagnoregio.
We got there without a map, but intuitively, we tried to walk towards a cliff edge, and thankfully we were in the right direction. These towns are so small you never really get lost anyway. We walked across the pedestrian bridge and entered the old ancient Bagnoregio, where again, there were hardly any people, this being the non peak season.
We were invited by Fabrizio (I think that's his name, but I might be wrong), who owns a bruschetteria- and in there is a 1500 year old olive press, to have some bruschetta. He toasted the bread in his wood fire oven, topped them with organic olive salsa, truffle spread, grilled eggplants and pickled zucchini. Fabrizio presses his own olive oil, and makes his own wine. He engaged us in great conversation while we ate in what used to be a stable for his family's horses. Easily the best food we ever had, and I walked out slightly tipsy. He has a BnB, in case you ever miss the bus and have to sleep something. I'm sure his hospitality might make you want to stay longer.
So, when in Rome, don't just stick to Rome!
I have to say, this trip in this part of Italy has changed my perspective on how I should be travelling through this country. It is easy to travel around, and never only stay in the city, leave the city and you always see much more!
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