Sunday Nov 14, 2010
All photos from our port of call at Civitavecchia can be found here.
Like our stop in Livorno, many of the people in our group had been to Rome and thought our stop in that area would be better spent seeing other things we didn't get to see on the previous trip. Also, we knew we would be visiting on a Sunday, and that would likely interfere with some of the things we might want to see in the city (i.e. Sunday services at the Vatican). So rather than going into Rome, we chose a tour that would take us to Cerveteri, Ceri, and Lake Bracciano. I was anticipating another wine tasting/food focused type of tour, but beyond that, I really didn't know what to expect.
Our drivers/guides - we used Rome In Limo and they were fabulous - picked us up by the ship in Civitavecchia, which means "old city" when literally translated. As in many parts of Italy, there are quite a few ruins visible in the area, including some old sea fortresses. We didn't stop at any of them, but Mauro, our guide/driver, pointed them out to us with a little bit of explanation as we drove past. He then said we were going to Cerveteri, and specifically to the Etruscan necropolis there. I didn't really understand what that would entail, but I knew necropolis meant something similar to city of the dead, so I thought it sounded pretty cool. I didn't know anything about the Etruscans, though, so it would definitely be a learning experience.
Little did I know how cool it would be. After paying our entrance fees, we walked into the maintained area and publicly accessible of the park and began our explorations of the tombs. They were these mounds of differing circumferences and heights, but there was no doubt they were ancient tombs. Most had stone walls and interiors covered with domes of stone and dirt. Most in this location had grass growing on top of the domes, and on top of some there were trees and bushes. Some had entrances just a few steps above or below the ground level, while others required a climb up or a climb down in order to reach the entrance. Some were dug into the ground - those were older than the "mounds" - some of those date back to the 9th century BC! There were tons of them, and our time didn't allow us to go into every tomb. However, what we saw was amazing, seeing and entering and exploring these tombs that were were between 2,300 and 3,000 years old. The amazing thing is that this particular necropolis is approximately 400 hectares with about 10 hectares open to the public for viewing and exploration. That translates into about 988 acres with almost 25 acres open. It is a huge site with much to see.
 Etruscan Necropolis   |
 Etruscan Necropolis |
 Etruscan Tomb |
 Etruscan Tomb |
 Etruscan Tomb |
 Etruscan Necropolis |
As we were finishing up the tour of the main park/open area, our guides informed us that something special was happening that Sunday. In another part of the park that is usually closed to the public, they were going to open a tomb for only two hours that day. Tombs that are outside of the main park area require permission from the Italian Ministry of Fine Arts before they're opened. As it turns out, there was a small group of four archaeologists (that's what we were told; we don't know if they were professionals or amateurs, or where they were from) that had gone through the Italian bureaucracy and had obtained the permission to enter the tomb of one of the Etruscan Tarquinii royal families. The entrance to the tomb was down in a recessed area, and we waited there for our turn until the archaeologists were finished. As we waited, one of the park caretakers was explaining some about that area in general, and that tomb in particular. The problem was, he was speaking Italian, and it was hard to follow. Luckily, our guides gave us an overview translation when he was finished. When it was our turn, we descended the hill and went into the tomb. It was a little treacherous to get in, as there was water and mud standing just inside the entrance door. Once inside, it was pretty much pitch black. As photos revealed, they did have a light in there, but apparently it wasn't working or hooked up or something. Instead, we had to rely on a couple of LED flashlights for illumination while in the tomb. It was hard to see anything, even after your eyes adjusted to the darkness, but we were able to make out some of the writings with the help of the lamps. Our drivers/guides, Mauro and Maurizio, were very excited about entering the tomb, as neither had been in it. Due to time pressures, Mauro skipped the tomb and retrieved a van to take the group back to the other van, and he didn't get to go into that tomb. Maurizio, though, was very impressed. The caretakers in the tomb allowed me to take some photos of the tomb's interior, and they actually came out pretty well even though there was no natural lighting.
 Tomb of Royal Family Tarquinii |
 Tomb of Royal Family Tarquinii |
 Tomb of Royal Family Tarquinii |
 Tomb of Royal Family Tarquinii |
 Tomb of Royal Family Tarquinii |
 Tomb of Royal Family Tarquinii |
Maurizio drove the whole group in the smaller van back to the other van, and then we proceeded to Bracciano, a small medieval town about 30 kilometers northwest of Rome. I knew there was a lake called Lake Bracciano, but I didn't realize there was a small town by the same name. Nor did I realize that the village housed castle! I guess that's what I get for not doing my homework before the trip. As we approached, I thought, "Oh, cool! A castle! I bet we don't get to go into it, though." Well, we did. It was pretty exciting for me since I'd never been in a real castle before. Anyway, the castle is called Castello Odescalchi and was built in the latter part of the 15th century. So while not as old as some other castles, it was still impressive in its scale. I should say, though, that the outer façade is 15th century. It was built to surround a much older medieval stronghold. We toured a portion of the interior, including some of the reception and banquet areas that are available for rental today. In fact, Tom Cruise and Katy Holmes were married at this castle several years ago, and we were able to see the rooms and areas used for that.
More interestingly to me historically, however, was the fact that one of the female members of the famed Medici family - Isabella di Medici - of Florence apparently married someone from the Orsini family and lived there a short time before her murder. As the legend goes, she would "entertain" lovers in her room, and once finished would invite them into a hallway that supposedly led to a parlor where she would shortly join them. In fact, there was a trap door on the floor that, when opened, would cause the unsuspecting fellow to fall into a razor-lined pit below. The body was then covered with lime to dissolve it. Enraged by her infidelity (of which he learned by eavesdropping on her confessions to her priest), her husband ultimately strangled her in her bed. That's how the story there goes, anyway. Other accounts say she was killed in Florence or Empoli, but still for the reason of infidelity. They say her ghost makes appearances on occasion at the castle. Anyway, being there and seeing all of that was very cool.
After finishing the tour of the interior rooms of the castle (and climbing all of the requisite stairs), we actually toured the, for lack of a better term, exterior interior parts of the castle. In other words, we were outside, but still inside the castle walls. I was able to take a few pretty good pictures of Lake Bracciano from that vantage point. Then it was out of the castle and back onto the bus.
 Castello Odescalchi |
 Castello Odescalchi |
 Lake Bracciano |
 Lake Bracciano |
 Castello Odescalchi |
 Castello Odescalchi |
By this time, everyone was getting a little hungry, and we were off to Ceri. The "modern" portion of the town got its start back in the early 1200's, but the area has been inhabited since before the 7th century BC. The crazy thing about this place, though, is how you get a vehicle from the bottom to the top and down again. The town itself is actually inside a fortress, with one road up and down. It is only wide enough for a single vehicle, so traffic cannot pass in opposite directions. There are traffic lights at the top and bottom that control the traffic up and down the narrow road. It is so narrow in some places that our tour vans - especially the larger of the two - had to retract the side mirrors and almost scrape the wall to avoid taking out pedestrians walking up or down the road. Here's an overhead picture of it from Wikipedia.com. See the steep road going up the hill on the right? That how we got up and down from the top.
Our destination was a trattoria at the top of the hill called Trattoria Sora Lella. It is a multi-level restaurant with a terrace and a fabulous view of the countryside below, and nobody there speaks a lick of English. We were definitely off the beaten path there, and it was great! They had no menus in English, either, so Mauro and Maurizio negotiated for us to all share and sample a wide variety of the foods they offer. That also included sampling three or so of the wines they produce in the immediate area. The food and wine were as fantastic as the scenery. And I don't just mean the vistas of the countryside... A few of the waitresses there, and one in particular...wow... I'd just melt when she would respond, "Prego." But I digress... The meal was finished off with a fabulous tiramisu - I just love that stuff - before getting a quick tour of the restaurant's wine cellar.
 Ceri |
 Lunch in Ceri |
 Ceri |
After the meal, we got back in the vans for the crazy trip down off the hill on that one-way road, in the process coming perilously close to a gentleman in a wheelchair. Once we were finally at the bottom, we made our way back to Cerveteri and to the Etruscan archaeological museum there. Inside they had many artifacts recovered from the necropolis as well as other items collected that relate to the Etruscan civilization. The detail on some of the pieces was incredible, especially knowing the age of the items.
When we finished there, it was back to the vans and back to Civitavecchia to the boat. We made a quick stop in the square of the town so some folks could hit an ATM, then it was back to the pier. Earlier in the day I had shown both Mauro and Maurizio the photos I'd taken in the "special" tomb, and they both asked that I make sure to post those photos to their Facebook page, then it was arrivederci to them. In case you didn't catch it, Mauro and Maurizio from RomeInLimowere fantastic guides and drivers. The were both very knowledegable about the area and what they took us to see, very entertaining and extremely nice to spend the day with.
This day marked the end of a pretty crazy and busy few days. We had boarded the ship on Thursday, were in France Friday, Tuscany Saturday, and the outskirts of Rome on Sunday. All of them had been full days with early starts. Thankfully we had two full days at sea to look forward to. We could sleep late, relax, read, or do whatever. I was definitely looking forward to it, especially the sleeping in part - I don't do early mornings too well.
Here's the continuation of the story, a few days at sea.