Yesterday we had our first taste of the Italian countryside. Filled with rolling green hills, lakes, sheep, vineyards, olive trees, and occasional medieval towns, it seems entirely likely that a magical unicorn or hidden fairy kingdom will appear around any bend. 
Our first stop was a medieval town named Viterbo about an hour north of Rome. Next to the parking lot was a huge silver sculpture of a man that appeared to be sinking into the ground.
A bit random but of course a favorite of the kids. Then we explored Viterbo which has a palace that housed the Popes seat in the 13th century.
We didn’t stay too long since we are pretty castled and churched out. An hour later we arrived in Montefiascone at an old farm stone house full of charm and probably the official residence of the Three Bears and Goldilocks.
After dropping off our bags and exploring all the secret wardrobes, we headed to Civita de Bagnoregio, a spectacular hillside city accessible by a pedestrian bridge.
The Etruscans (the people that inhabited parts of Italy before the Romans) originally lived underneath in caves dug out of the hillside. I didn’t get any pictures of these caves, but we felt a little nervous about earthquakes occurring while we were down there. The city above us was already having trouble staying erect due to the eroding cliffs on all sides of it, so our minds easily imagined how quickly it would crumble with the many tunnels and underground caves underneath it. We survived and made it back across the pedestrian only bridge (which several cars drove across while we squeezed against the railings?!?).
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