Day Two and Three – November 1st

Last night we ate at La Grotta, pretty expensive but the food was decent. Jill had a steak (she said medium, came out rare) and I had some ravioli and piccioni (that’s pigeon). Pigeon was a bit gamy and not a lot of meat, but it was stuffed with goose which was excellent. Total bill ran E76, expensive.

Today we found many of the wineries we wanted to visit closed. Wednesday is probably a mass day. So instead we drove up to Castiglione del Lago on Lago Trasimeno. Basically it’s a palace adjoined to a castle on the edge of a large lake, probably the coolest part of our trip so far. The castle isn’t “too ancient” by European standards, “only” 16th century. But it was very cool and pretty spooky and the palace was quite impressive, with frescoes on the ceiling throughout. We were able to walk along the ramparts around the whole thing.

Relaxing right now, tomorrow we’ll make another attempt at the winery on our way to Roma. On the way, we’re planning a stop in Orvieto, where on the agenda is the mega-impressive duoma (cathedral) , a medieval well you can walk down into, and a ceramic shop with space underneath the city with a catacombs-like feel.

Well we forgot to remind ourselves of the little restaurant we ate at tonight. I tried the gnocchi and the biggest veal steak I’ve ever had. Was good, though undercooked. Jill had a four cheese pizza which contained a cheese she didn’t care for. Oh well, can’t win ‘em all.

We’re packing to leave Montorio now, and it’s bittersweet. I can’t wait to get to Rome, there’ll be so much to do and so much to see. But that’s just it, Montepulciano , though I’m sure it’s busy and crowded during the summer, is perfect now. Nice cool weather, empty streets, and peace and quiet, the perfect antidote to a busy week leading up to the wedding. Next stop, Orvieto, and then on to Roma.



Day Three – November 2nd

Oofa, what a day. We made it to the Poliziano winery, weren’t able to tour but we were able to taste. We bought 12 bottles, 5 Rosso, 5 Nobile, and 1 Nobile Asinone and 1 Madrone for a gift.

Almost got into 2 accidents on the way to Orvieto, only one would have been my fault. Orvieto was very interesting. The well was like 300 feet deep and walking down (and especially up) tired us out. We walked up to the duoma which was pretty magnificent, unfortunately it was closed for repairs! Ugh. Oh well, an excuse to come back.

We then drove to Rome and got our 1st real experience in Italian driving. How we didn’t get into an accident or witness one or see someone killed is beyond me and I will never understand. We had a guardian angel or something, cuz it definitely wasn’t my skillful driving. Getting around in Rome is confusing and we never did find our rental car dropoff near the hotel, instead we ended up driving all the way back to the airport and getting a cab. Travel Tip: if you rent a car to get around Italy, don’t try to drive in Rome. That’ll be E10 for the advice.

We ate at a nice restaurant nearby on Via Veneto. Forgot to get the name… OH! It was Caffé Stregga. Tasty and not too expensive. I had lasagna and scaloppini, whatever that is, and Jill finally got the roasted chicken she’s been craving (Jill: “And potatoes!!!”) Also had our first taste of gelato (pistachio) which was tasty but not amazing, but I’d never had pistachio ice cream before so I’ve nothing to compare it with.

Afterward we walked down Via Veneto to the Piazza Barberini, which was okay. The fountain was neat but reminded me of something you’d find in Disney World, Neptune supported by 3 large fish. It was this bug square and nary a bench to be seen.

Oh, forgot to mention the prostitutes we saw on the way to Rome. It seems they’re not in the city, but on the outskirts they were pretty much everywhere and pretty obvious.

Tomorrow is the Vatican, can’t wait.