Le Terra, Days 4 and 5

Tuesday was a quiet day. Jean had come down with a cold, so we all decided to take it easy at the villa. It is a great place to just sit and read. The spring is beautiful all around, from the 100 year-old oak in the back to the about-to-bloom irises by the door. There are pots of geraniums, azaleas, and begonias all around the porches and the deck, and the whole thing is full of bees and birds and a few geckos as well. Lavender is everywhere.
We were also awaiting the arrival of the rest of our group, Del and Sandy Fadden, who were flying into Rome late that afternoon. They were renting a car and driving up. We had coordinated some ways to connect once they were close. Well, that kind of went awry when they missed the sharp left turn to Orte at the toll plaza - it was really dark, and it's hard to catch in the middle of the day even when you know it's there! They called and we finally got them turned around and eventually they arrive at the villa, with Larry up on the road to make sure they got to the right driveway! (The drive from the paved road down the villa is a very sharp hairpin tight radius 180 degree turn!) It was lovely to see them and welcome them to the adventure. We got them settled, and all settled in for the night.

The next day, Wednesday, was market day in Vasanello, so we checked it out. These weekly markets are not as big as they used to be, but many people still get things like household goods, clothing, and especially plants and meat products here. We bought a chicken to roast in the outside oven, and went into the panateria for good Vasanello bread, and bought delicious veggies at the veggie shop. Here's a picture from the market - the stand where we bought our chicken:After taking our purchases back to the villa, we headed west to find Etruscan tombs. They are everywhere. The ancient Etruscans had their major population centers in this area, and so the ancient ruins and tombs are prolific. We went to find the ones at Norchia. First we drove around Lago Vico, an extremely beautiful park and resort area. The drive, much of it on a high ridge and tunneling down through brilliant green trees, was magnificent. We stopped for lunch at a little trattoria in a town along the way where they were grilling meat on an open fire in an inside fireplace. We finally found Norchia, after some odd turns directed by Dorothy, our GPS voice, and several map consultations. It was at the end of a road at the end of a road, and we walked down to it on a path along a farm field. When we arrived, there was a posted sign telling us (in English as well) about the town that had been there since 4000 BC! It was a deep canyon with tombs carved into the walls and layers of walls from several millenia of cultures. Everyone except Nancy (a bit steep and treacherous) walked into the bottom of the canyon to see what could be seen. It was nothing fancy - just a canyon by a field in the forests of western Italy. But all the peoples of the place came together there. Amazing. Here's a picture from Norchia:We enjoyed the landscape again as we drove back to Vasanello for supper at the villa.