Acquadepente, Italy

So again, I had found a place on atlasobscura.com called Bosco del Sasseto in the town of Aquadepente, a town about 30 kilometers east of where we are. So, A, the boys and I pack into the car (Drew has decided his last day would be a relaxing one at the house) and drive out.

Bosco del Sasseto is a forested area that contains a mausoleum of the owner of the nearby, Castello di Torre Afina. Except these places aren’t in Aquadepente, as such, but that’s what I put in the GPS. After doing a lap of this quaint town, including being yelled at driving down the wrong way of a one-way street, we headed out to Torre Afina – with the right directions – to arrive midday after driving down a beautiful tree-lined road to get into town.

Castello di Torre Afina, Acquadepente, Italy

I should have known from the way the day started that it may not get better. And that was the case. We found a spot to park in this small town and walked up to the castle only to find Castello di Torre Afina was not open to public. We walked around it to get some pictures and decided we’d just head down to Bosco del Sasseto and tour that instead. We found the ticket office and I thought it said it was open from 10.30am – 5pm, but I couldn’t find a place to actually buy a ticket. We ended up running into another couple who, bless their kindness, told us that tours only occurred at 10.30 and 5pm (thanks to Google translate on the phone). Our new found Italian friends were not local so could not guide us to a place to eat lunch. And we couldn’t find anything. So as people started getting hangry, we jumped back in the car and headed back Orvieto.

We drove back via Castel Giorgio, hoping we’d find lunch and an attraction there. Turns out there is no castle in Castel Giorgio but we found a place for lunch. Zoobar. What a find! A little café where my minimal Italian and their minimal English got us a great little lunch. The cafe itself is obviously a locals’ place, as just after we ordered the place was overrun with local workers. Anyway a few slices of pizza later, we ordered gelato for the boys and were on our way.

We wondered at the county side during our 20 kilometers back to Orvieto where we went and parked at the top of the funicular, right next to Pozzo di San Patrizio (St. Patrick’s Well). The well was built in 1537 and is named after St Patrick’s Purgatory in Donegal Ireland. Inferring that both places are deep enough to be a gateway to hell. This 200-foot deep well is designed like the structure of a DNA helix, i.e., one side goes down the 248 steps and then you come up a different ramp and never the 2 walkways cross. 70 windows line the ramps as you descend and ascend into the refreshingly cool air. The well is in great condition and it is hard to wrap my head around being something that is 500 years old.

St. Patrick's Well, Orvieto, Italy

L & B, St. Patrick's Well, Orvieto, Italy

B, L & M, St. Patrick's Well, Orvieto, Italy

St. Patrick's Well, Orvieto, Italy

B, M, D & L, St. Patrick's Well, Orvieto, Italy

On the drive back up to the house was stopped for our first lot of gas. For all the complaints about gas prices in the US at the moment, its nothing to the €2.09 per liter (€7.52 a gallon) we just paid. €90 to fill the tank.

We all had dinner at home tonight. Sausage and pasta as we sat at the outdoor table and enjoyed another beautiful Umbrian sunset.