Viterbo

It is a medieval city full of monuments and places of great artistic and historical charm. In the old town you can visit the fascinatingPalace of the Popes, a symbol of the city and an ancient Papal residence. The Palace was built in the 13th century and has an elegant Loggia from which the newly elected Popes looked out. It offers a great view of Viterbo and the surrounding valleys. In front of the Palace there is the Cathedral of San Lorenzo,a complex testimony of the city with  Tuscan influenced bell tower. One scenic   walk is through the medieval district ofS. Pellegrinowith its narrow streets, the elevated passages and the tower-houses from the Romanesque era. The streets overlook several art and antique shops, galleries and studios of painters.

The medieval Church ofS. Maria della Verità,offers wonderful frescoes byLorenzo da Viterbo, and a few steps away there is theCivic Museum in a former Gothic convent where there are both Etruscan archaeological remains from a nearby Necropolis as well as numerous paintings, such as thePietàbySebastiano del Piombo, a student of Michelangelo Buonarroti.