On my first year in the mission the thought of going to an outing was quite exciting. So when I heard of the news of the community’s Pasquetta I was really thrilled. More so, to beautiful places like Civita di Bagnoregio and Città Bolsena…Why? Wikipedia has this to say: Civita was founded by the Etruscans more than 2,500 years ago. It is also the birthplace of St. Bonaventure born as Giovanni di Fidanza. He was canonized on 14 April 1482 by Pope Sixtus IV and declared a Doctor of the Church in the year 1588 by Pope Sixtus V. He is known as the “Seraphic Doctor”. The location of his boyhood house has long since fallen off the edge of the cliff. By the 16th century, Civita was beginning to decline, becoming eclipsed by its former suburb Bagnoregio.

Actually Civita di Bagnoregio is a two remote towns. Civita is on a hill accessible only by a long stone walkway that begins at the end of the road from neighboring Bagnoregio. The town is noted for its striking position atop a plateau of friable volcanic tuff overlooking the Tiber river valley. It is in constant danger of destruction as the edges of the plateau collapse due to erosion, leaving the buildings to crumble as their underlying support falls away. 

And we can find the town of Bolsena 14.5 kms from Civita di Bagnoregio, still in the province of Viterbo, in northern Lazio on the eastern shore of Lake Bolsena. It is 10 kms. north-north west of Montefiascone and 36 kms north-west of Viterbo.  Bolsena is known for a miracle said to have occurred in the Basilica of Santa Cristina in 1263, when a Bohemian priest, in doubt about the doctrine of Transubstantiation, reported bleeding from the host he had consecrated at Mass. The Orvieto Cathedral was eventually built to commemorate the miracle and house the Corporal of Bolsena in a reliquary made by Sienese goldsmith Ugolino di Vieri in 1337-1338.  

A Visit to these unique and enchanting towns really gives awe inspiring moment, a revitalizing spirit and a sense of wonder to God’s amazing creations.