March 25, 2026 - Staying home in Roccalvecce

 Since we were in the car most of the day yesterday, we opted to stay home today, except for errands.  Matt and I drove to the nearest small store, in the town of Celleno.  Small, but with fresh cheeses/sausages/bread/vegetables.  I wanted to get more of the wonderful cookies to take home but they only had one package.  They said more are being delivered tomorrow and they're getting enough so I can stock up.

Later, we hit Eileen's favorite place for lunch.  We ate there the other day and it was good so today I tried a different pasta (Alfredo) and a salad.  Both amazing. With huge portions - I have MORE than enough for dinner tonight.

You'd think I wouldn't have many photos today since it was mostly just hanging out but...guess what?

Photos!

Eileen loves all dogs, including this cutie, named Rolling, after the Rolling Stones.  Owned by one of the nice older gentlemen who live in the village.

See that window with dark shutters, in the middle?  That's my kitchen window.

A small, old church in Roccalvecce.

This fountain is fed by a live stream and people in the village still get some of their water here.

The patron saint of the village and his pig.  This area is known for pigs.  We saw several the other night on our way home from dinner.

The private castle grounds have a fountain, swimming pool, garden and a tennis court.

There are no bad views from Roccalvecce.

This house is for sale.  I want it just because of the doors.

Have I mentioned this is how they announce deaths?  I've seen a board like this in every town we've visited, including Viterbo.

Good food requires good ingredients.  Check out these tomatoes in the small neighborhood grocery store in Celleno.

Not sure if they grow these here or folks just like to eat them.

It's a small supermarket but has everything we needed.  And the people working there were very helpful and friendly.  Not many people (especially the older ones) speak English here but are patient and my Spanglish helps.

The lunch restaurant.  Matt thinks they have the best pizza but they only serve that at dinner and don't open for dinner until 7:30 p.m.  And, it's a 30 minute drive.

They didn't skimp on portion size - or pepper.  Freshly ground.  

We took a side road on the way home through yet another hill top town and stopped at this park.

First Eileen buried Matt in grass she pulled.  Then he buried her.

March 22, 2026 - Tired of Looking at Italian Hill Towns?

 I'm not!  Today, I checked out of the Airbnb in Viterbo and moved to Roccalvecce, literally a block from my friends' house.  Then, we headed to lunch in another nearby hill town.  They're everywhere!  And so beautiful.

Here are more photos.  In reverse order, of course.

M, L and E dropped me off near my house, then went on home.  They were worried about me walking about 50 yards by myself.  Their house is so close and the town so small/quiet, they'd have heard me if I needed help.

Matt and I shared this pizza with gorgonzola, spicy sausage, caramelized onions and cheese.  Very thin crust and very delicious.  On our 15 minute drive home, we saw several wild boar and a porcupine.

My living room in Roccalvecce.

The bidet is tucked away on the left.

The living room - that's front door.

My bedroom for the week.

It says Taverna but I think it is a private home.

These lights shine on the castle at night.

Just past the awning, next to the parked car, is Matt and Lori's house.

Their next door neighbor's front door.  He doesn't live there but is currently renovating it.  You can buy a lovely small home for less than $20,000 here.

Matt and I went antique shopping.

That's Roccalvecce, from a distance.  The big yellow building is the castle.

We drove to a village for lunch and then walked to some ruins afterwards.

Dogs seem to be welcome everywhere, including restaurants.

Best olives ever.  They don't eat olives so I ate the whole bowl.  They'd been marinated in fresh orange juice and zest.  I'm going to try that when I get home.

For lunch, a light (!) dish of beet risotto with burratta.

Eileen had a chicken cutlet with some really tasty roasted potatoes.

I'm going to try making this tortini de patata - basically grated potatoes, mixed with milk, topped with cheese and baked, then topped with fried onions.

This shrub with new red leaves are everywhere and make stunning hedges.

Wild iris are all over, both white and purple.

Another view of Roccalvecce.

In the newer area of Viterbo are a variety of "big box" stores for food, furniture, etc.  This place was huge and similar to a Super Target, but less expensive.

And, it had a resident cat.