Back in March 2015, I found a great $678 round-trip airfare to Rome, Italy, in August 2015, so I invited my mother to travel with me again.
The flight was through Charlotte, North Carolina, on US Airways.  We left on Monday, August 3, 2015.
This was our dinner on the flight from Charlotte to Rome: chicken, mashed potatoes, vegetables, bread, butter, cheese, crackers, salad with vinaigrette, chocolate brownie, and bottle of water.  The food was really good!  We refilled that water bottle every day throughout the trip, too.An hour and a half before landing, we had breakfast: strawberry-scented yogurt, granola topping, dried cranberries, and a cranberry-orange muffin top.  Yum!
We took the train from Rome's Fiumicino Airport to Roma Tiburtina train station, then we caught the train to Orvieto.  Tickets were 23 euros each ($26).We took the funicular up from the train station to Orvieto's old town, then we caught the minibus to the Duomo.  Our hotel, Hotel Duomo, was just a block from the Duomo.
We paid 104.60 euros ($114) for our room at Hotel Duomo.  It was air-conditioned and available at 2 pm when we arrived.  The beds were very comfortable!The room was ensuite and had a tub!
After a brief arrival siesta/nap, we hit the town.  First stop: the nearby Meta supermarket to get a snack (some Pringles)! We walked through Orvieto, arriving at the scenic overlook near San Giovenale church just at 5 pm.
Next, we followed the (very steep) Ramparts Stroll mentioned in the Rick Steves Italy 2015 book.We took the elevator down to Campo della Fiera for a nice view of the old town (and the town's parking garage).
We joined the Anello della Rupe, the paved walk around the old town. It was very hot, and there were lots of bugs, but the views on the walk were beautiful!
More views of our walk on the Rupe. We re-entered Orvieto through this gate near Piazza Cahen.  It was so reminiscent of our climb up to Toledo, Spain, in 2009 (only the Puerta del Sol is fancier)!
Yes, we were on that path down there!  We circumnavigated about 40% of the town.In the background is the Torre del Moro, a tower in Orvieto that marks the center of town.
We got to the Duomo just at that magical time when the sun makes things glow.  The stripes on the cathedral are so beautiful! It was getting late, so we decided to eat at Bistrotters, which had outdoor seating.  They were very busy!

We both got margherita pizzas.  They were so good!