Viterbo

Today was a transition day - we were flying home from Rome early tomorrow and decided to stay somewhere within under an hour from Rome airport, that is also a nice place so I could explore and enjoy the afternoon while Igor worked. Our plan was guided by the available VoiceMaps. We first stopped at Viterbo - a medieval town in the heart of the region of Umbria. It was very quiet and nice - a bit of a an alive time capsule, with medieval towers often converted into the apartment buildings. The town is famous for its summer annual religious procession where people carry what is called the Macchina di Santa Rosa through the town. The macchina was frequently mentioned in the VoiceMap tour and according to Google images it is indeed very impressive and enormous. It reminded us of the infamous Zozobra, except it doesn’t get burned. We also learned that Viterbo apparently was the filming location for many Italian movies, including some famous Fellini movies and some modern TV series like Catch 22. It makes sense because the town is so well preserved but also not touristy at all. We then drove an hour to the seaside town of Civitavecchia with another VoiceMap tour where we would stay overnight. Unfortunately it was a bit less picturesque than I imagined it’s a major port where many cruise ships and ferries depart from, so the VoiceMap tour was targeted towards the cruise ship passengers and it starts and end a near the cruise ship terminal. It’s a bit of a rundown town, so maybe not the best choice for the night, but it was convenient and interesting to see an everyday non touristy town. We were ready to fly home in the morning, after such an incredible, deeply satisfying and beautiful journey through time and places.Read more