Walking with Monsters and Bathing with Michelangelo

Bomarzo from the park

Tricia and I had the most marvelous field trip today: we traveled down to Viterbo via Bomarzo.

So, the first stop was Bomarzo, and its gardens. I first read about this site on Atlas Obscura, and have been dying to go ever since. However, being a bit further afield, it was the type of trip that really needed a pretext and a companion.

Note the height of the railing...this thing was HUGE

The woman is life-sized

Orca

As the article states, it was built in the mid 1500s by a prince who was mourning the death of his wife...a sort of Italian Taj Mahal, if you will. However, rather than being a tomb, it is this wonderful wooded park with the most unsettling sculptures. These include a tortoise carrying a woman that is probably, oh, 15 feet tall?

We saw an elephant crushing a person with its trunk, one giant eating another, sleeping beauty, a house that rivals those in fun fairs: tilted, walking through it is a rather peculiar feeling, a temple, and more! The grounds were spectacular, and the sculptures were really indescribable. While pictures help, you have to imagine these things as HUGE!

Tricia eating in the mouth

Inside the mouth

I wouldn't want to anger THIS Fury!

Our chariot!

After we had seen the park, we drove off to Viterbo to the Terme dei Papi (Papal baths). These are vaunted to have been enjoyed by the popes over the years, Dante, and Michelangelo! It's a huge spa complex, but Tricia and I decided that the open pool was just our speed. We were impressed with the high-tech bracelets that opened and closed your chosen locker, and the changing rooms were very modern and quite clean.

Mineral accretions on the edge of the pool

And the pool! Fed by hot mineral springs, the light sulfur and high mineral combined so nicely with the cool outdoor air. It's a large pool; while there were quite a few people in the pool, it didn't feel crowded! We passed several delightful hours chatting and comparing notes, as well as solving the world's problems.

Refilling the pool!
The water here was nearly scalding

On our way home (it's about a two-hour drive), we had spectacular scenery until dark. And then it happened: a few miles outside of Todi, the car shimmied and made an odd noise. Very sad! Time to call Vincenzo the mechanic. Rolando (the other mechanic) eventually came driving up with this HUGE tow truck! Having light allowed us to see the problem quite easily: a flat tire! Five minutes of work, all changed, and off we went. Rolando was laughing, though, because the tire was flat enough that the inner tube was dangling out!

Love,

Alexandra