Tufo!

Sunday, September 18

I had no idea what tufo/tuff was. Now I know. It is a type of rock made from volcanic ash. It is good for keeping things cool, but it can get quite damp. We visited a town made of tufo today called Barbarano Romano, population 900.

But all of that happened near the end of the day. In the beginning, Neil and Alex ran around the walls (5K) while Eleni and I...I'm not sure what we did, but it did not involve running. When they returned, we packed up the car again for another long day. This time we headed south on the Cassia Sud, which is one of the oldest roads in Europe. It connects Rome to Viterbo to Bolsena. Our little Fiat Panda chugged along for an hour to visit a family.

We had an enjoyable and easy going lunch (these last 4-5 hours, too). Afterwards, our hosts invited us to explore the town with them. The cliffs around Barbarano Romano have been inhabited since the 6th century BC. There are Etruscan ruins here, and you already know that the current city was built on tufo!

There is only one way in and one way out of the less than a half mile long Barbarano Romano. Here it is.

You can immediately smell the damp. It's omnipresent.

The city built in and around the tufo rock. The cellars of these homes go down two-three stories! Pitch black openings that made me a bit nervous about walking near with the kids.

Etruscan ruins in the natural reserve which is part of the town.

A doubly protected town! See the spaces for shooting arrows at your enemy?

Gelato and home again!