Hello friends. During our vacation in the Lazio region, we were around Lake Bolsena and visited neighboring towns like Civita di Bagnoregio, Orvieto, Viterbo, Montefiascone, Bolsena, Marta and the charming village of Sant'Angelo. We wandered around the lake and our vacation was truly wonderful. We saw so many different beauties that words cannot describe.
Let me start this post with Montefiascone, where I'll show you where we stayed and describe our walk through the old town. During our journey, we stopped for a snack at Autogrill. A lunch for four cost us 100 euros.
First we settled into an apartment in Montefiascone. We were greeted by a cat.
Our apartment had an intercom door and there was a fold-out sofa bed that we immediately opened. There was also a kitchen with everything we needed, even a cocoa coffee machine.
Our room had an amazing view. I loved the medieval atmosphere. I was fascinated. There was no air conditioning, but there were fans and the weather was quite pleasant when we were there. Everything was clean and spacious, the furniture was normal and beautiful. The room was small but had everything you could need for a day, a week or even a month's stay. They had everything for household needs. There were brooms and other cleaning materials, everything we might need in general. I really enjoyed the view from the windows.
After resting a bit, we went for a walk in Montefiascone. I must say the weather on the first day wasn't very hot. It drizzled lightly along the way and it was raining when we arrived in Montefiascone. So we were a bit skeptical if we would spend our holiday hiding from rain at home. But later the weather cleared up. The clouds created an interesting scenery. There were clouds bringing rain in the valley.
It was very relaxing to be in this city because Bari, in Puglia, had a temperature of 40 degrees. With the added high humidity, it was really challenging. In Montefiascone however, it was raining and the temperature was about 20 degrees. This 20 degree difference provided incredible relief after enduring such heat in southern Italy for two months.
Montefiascone is a quite interesting town and is famous for a few things. One of the first things that comes to mind when you mention this town is Montefiascone wine. We happened to come here during the two week wine festival days. It was a complete coincidence. We chose Lake Bolsena while looking at different places. The fact that there was a festival here, with lots of tasting events, cooking classes, concerts every evening, was a really interesting experience.
In the mornings we went to the lake to relax, took trips to different neighboring towns and in the evenings, we walked through the old town. We walked through the old town every evening and really enjoyed it. There was an event, the feeling of being in the heart of the holiday, the holiday and festive atmosphere were very nice. I really liked it and despite there being many tourists in this small town, it wasn't like walking in a square in Rome's center where there are thousands of tourists. There were far fewer people here, but it was still lively.
Despite the cloudy weather, after lunch we immediately went for a walk in the old town. Montefiascone is a small town in the Lazio region with a population of about 13.000. It is located at an altitude of 600 meters and offers a rare panoramic view of the calm waters of Lake Bolsena. This lake was formed in the calderas of extinct volcanoes about 370.000 years ago. The Consular Road of Cassia, visible from Montefiascone's belvedere, runs along the shores of Lake Bolsena.
The volcanic nature of Montefiascone is highly conducive to vine cultivation. The wines from this region are now exported worldwide. The town's coat of arms features a wine barrel atop six small mountains. The earliest written evidence about this important center dates back to the 9th century ad, but archaeological excavations indicate that the hill where the historical center stands today was inhabited centuries earlier. Experts say not only the historical center but also the lower part in the valley below is interesting. However on this vacation we stayed at the top, situated impressively on the slope of the impressive papal castle.
From this point, there is an unforgettable view of a volcanic lake landscape. We left in the morning and I watched the view for a long time on this platform. Because we stayed near the castle, we spent our time in the old town within the walls of the castle. I love places like this.
Places where there are plenty of stones and everything is filled with history are the tastiest parts of the city for me. What can you see in Montefiascone? Of course, Santa Margherita Cathedral. This is the real symbol of the town, its magnificent dome rising above the town can be seen from a distance. The diameter of this dome is 27 meters and it is the fourth largest dome in Italy after St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome, Santa Maria del Fiore Cathedral in Florence and the Pantheon. Santa Margherita Church was built to house the relics of young Margherita, who lived and died for the Christian Faith. The construction began in the 15th century. Later the temple was rebuilt in the 15th century.
The next important structure of the town is Rocca dei Papi Castle. Rocca dei Papi is located at the highest point of Montefiascone and is impressive in size. This place had great historical importance in its time. This was where the popes preferred to spend their holidays. The castle was built for defense purposes and during turbulent times of wars and revolutions, popes occasionally had to escape from Rome and hide here until the situation in Europe settled. Today this place has become a platform for exhibitions and concerts. The castle was largely destroyed at one time. There is a small archaeological park in the center. Part of the structure still stands and in this preserved section, there are a museum and valuable vaulted historic cellars. You can optionally taste wine, try local delicacies, such as typical local soups, in these cellars.
San Flaviano, Montefiascone's third largest and highly significant structure, is the medieval church of San Flaviano. It is an architectural gem. In fact, these are two multi-story buildings connected to each other through a very wide balcony and interior. Besides the impressive stone architecture of the facades, San Flaviano Church is famous for its interior and the tombs of important clergy, as well as being the burial place of Giovanni Fugger. Perhaps the strangest story of this town revolves around him. According to legend, Fugger's servant would mark the places where good wine was drunk with the word "Est!" to indicate to his master where the excellent wine could be found.
In the evening we took an atmospheric walk in Montefiascone. The city was a bit misty and there was a little rain. But the medieval streets were very, very atmospheric and they were incredibly different from everything we had seen in Southern Italy's Puglia.
Later we attended a night concert, which was part of the wine festival, of course. After the delightful concert, I went to bed with great excitement, knowing that the following days held many interesting experiences for us. The continuation of our vacation will be coming very soon. Thank you for reading.