Orvieto: Small But Superlative

Based on the 2000 Census there are slightly more than 3,300 five-figure cities in the U.S. – and thousands more throughout the world.

So what would it take for one of those places to emerge so clearly from the others that it would be described with words like “beautiful” and “perfect.”

Orvieto, Italy was described by Maureen B. Fant as a “perfect small town.” She elaborates, “. . . I cannot find a thing wrong with the medieval center of Orvieto, where some 23,000 souls live atop a tufa outcropping.”

Located about an hour’s train ride from Rome, Orvieto claims two “perfect streets for strolling and shopping” – Via del Duomo and Corso Cavour.

Other factors in the composition of this “perfection” include: a funicular for transportation, the Gothic Duomo with “world-class frescoes and sculpture,” an “excellent, recently renovated archaeological museum” and “gastronomic thrills” provided by Orvietani cooks.

In summary, Orvieto: small, beautiful, perfect.

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