Sunday, June 30, 2013

Stopover in Orvieto


Orvieto is a town in Umbria, in the Italian countryside. We stopped here for an early dinner before going to our farmhouse rental in Siena-Cortona.


Here is C, jetlagged from the long flight. I already told them to sleep through the first leg of the trip but Emirates' entertainment programs kept them wide awake the whole time!


They missed most of the beautiful countryside driving to Orvieto.


Meanwhile we drove around the Centro Storico looking for a place to have an early dinner.


We drove through the narrow cobbled streets for about ten minutes before parking right beside the Duomo.


Orvieto is perched high above the Umbrian countryside, and has spectacular vistas.


But the crown jewel of this town is the Duomo.


There were quite a number of tourists right in the piazza, including this group of artists, painting the church.


We grabbed a quick bite at Trattoria Etrusca, where C ordered her first rabbit, and enthusiastically ate it all saying "I love rabbit more than lamb because lamb can be so strong sometimes."  We have a little adventurous gourmet in the making.

Meanwhile, the rest of us had tagliatelle with tomato sauce, ravioli with porcini and an ever reliable bistecca. (No pictures of the food because we were ravenous)


It would've been nice to hang out longer, but we were tired and wanted to get "home" before it got dark. I've been to Orvieto with B and the folks a few years back so we didn't have to drag the kids inside "to look and see the church." (Something someone has been dreading ever since I told her that Italy is full of churches)

 Chess set in olive wood

One last look at the gorgeous view...

And now a drive to the north, towards Florence.


Our home for the next few days, with the rest of the extended family.


The kids are a bit creeped out at the antique-ness of the villa, but I reassured them that this house is probably newer than our own house. This is an old beautifully restored property, but is also bordering on "get-that-look" kitschy with ceiling frescos and shiny gilt frames. 


Looking forward to taking photos when there's daylight!

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