Ciampino is a 3 to 4 hour drive but the flight isn't till the evening so, even though it's an hour away and in completely the wrong direction, we head back to the house and, yes, it's still there and still idyllic.
We also go up into the town of Monte San Martino and have a wander around. It is so beautiful with magnificent views. The only thing missing is a visit to the church which is kept locked outside service times. We'd like to have seen the wonderful medieval paintings, of which the best are by the Crivelli brothers, but that will have to wait till we are there on a Sunday and can go to mass.
After that, it's a leisurely drive back in the trusty, but extremely mucky, little Lancia. The autostrada that runs from the Adriatic to Rome (the A24) is a sensational drive with great, sweeping viaducts and long tunnels (one over 10km and containing an underground nuclear physics lab) as it cuts through the the Gran Sasso mountains and under the highest peak in the Appenines, the Corno Grande.
We are still far too early to check in so decide to head (through heavy, late afternoon traffic) to Castel Gandolfo, a suburb of Rome where the Pope has his summer residence. We drive through the town till we find a cafe perched high above the lake and sit on the terrace enjoying ice creams. I look further up and realise that, just a little above us, is something I've seen before: the Papal residence. Not a bad place for a bit of a sit down (and the ice cream is great too).Then it's an uneventful flight home (Ciampino is a bit of a dump with not enough seats) and back to reality.
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