Lakes, Mountains and Sun

Buonjorno.........we have spent the past week in the scenic Lakes Region of northern Italy, splitting our time between Lakes Como and Garda, using a rental car to get around. Still sunny every day and temps in the low 20s C. The highway from Milan to Como was fine, similar to North America, but then the excitement started. Narrow, winding roads squeezed between the surrounding mountains and the lake called for attentive driving skills. The city of Como had lots to see......the spectacular Cathedral (somewhat surprising for a small place), the medieval pedestrian-friendly alleys and the lakeside promenade. We kept an eye out for George Clooney, who has a home there, but he must have kept his distance from us.

We then moved on further up Lake Como to the pretty town of Bellagio on the tip of a peninsula. The scenic drive there along the lake featured many Tour de France wannabes on the shoulder-less road adding another degree of difficulty for drivers where there was already barely enough room for two vehicles. It was hard to imagine being there in our camper van or making this journey in the busier summertime. We survived the drive and settled in for a 3 night recovery program in an apartment that was in easy walking distance to the lake eliminating the need to use our vehicle. We spent one day walking all around Bellagio checking out the beautiful murals in the Basilica, the gardens of Villa Serbelloni, the medieval alleyways and walking along the shoreline. We even found a couple of geocaches along the way. We had a fabulous dinner at a small restaurant in their back room wine cellar surrounded by excellent Italian wines. My brother had kindly recommended this spot to us. The following day we cruised around Lake Como with a short stop in Tremezzo on the opposite side of the lake. Villa Carlotta was the highlight there featuring not only a palace with fascinating stories but also a massive botanical garden that we walked all around.

The following morning we took a car ferry across the lake to Varenna where we did a short hike to Castello di Vezio, perched on top of a steep hill with great views of the lake. The hike down was much quicker and we then drove south along the east side of the lake before heading inland to Bergamo. We spent our time walking around the upper historic walled town with many sights to see. Completing a busy day we then drove on to Lake Garda and up the west side of the lake to Riva del Garda at the north end where we stayed for 2 nights. The Lake Garda road seemed a bit wider and the surrounding mountains both higher and steeper than Lake Como so it was a bit more comfortable drive with non-stop fabulous views. Riva was a treat to walk around.......wider streets, very large public squares and a lengthy lakeside promenade making it feel a lot less crowded than the Como towns we visited. We enjoyed Riva del Garda very much.

From Riva we drove down the east side of the lake stopping in both Garda and Bardolino where we walked around the lakeside towns and had drinks at outdoor patios by the lake to people watch which is often entertaining. We then left the lake and headed inland to Pastrengo where we are currently staying at an agriturismo (small farms / vineyards that rent out rooms). Pastrengo sits next to the Valpolicella wine region and we tasted wines at three different high quality wineries today......Le Salette, Allegrini and Tomassi and we came away with 4 nice bottles of wine including two Amarones. Wines that have to be carried in your backpack don't get a chance to age very long!

Tomorrow we will drive the short distance to Verona where we will part ways with our car, walk around the historic city centre and then catch a train to Venice. Happy belated Thanksgiving to all.

A typical Bellagio alley rising up from the Lake Como waterfront. Plenty of shops all along with the shop owners usually living above.

Bellagio's San Giacomo Basilica. All of the churches we have seen so far have beautiful frescoes painted on their walls or ceilings.

Bellagio waterfront with a frequently sighted lake ferry about to arrive.

While in Tremezzo we walked by the Grand Hotel which offered the only sand beach on the entire lake......the many other so called 'beaches' were covered in small pebbles, common throughout Europe. Note the pool in a big pool.

Villa Carlotta which was first completed in 1745. It is now a museum that shares very interesting stories of  its past.

A view from one of the balconies at Villa Carlotta. The massive botanical gardens were behind and beside the villa and its 20 acres were divided into sections from around the world.

One of our last views of Lake Como from the Castello di Vezio following our hike to the top. At the beginning of the tourist season they actually get visitors to pose in various positions while they drape them in cheese cloth dipped in plaster. Then they have them pose in that position for 60 minutes (for hardening to occur) at which point they cut them free and recreate the cast. Not sure if they entice them with alcoholic drinks served through a straw.

One of the large lakeside public squares in Riva del Garda.

Taken during a stopover in Garda. The European Union flags displayed in the harbour had one empty flagpole where the British flag used to hang.

Our agriturismo stay in Pastrengo. Our room was the one on the top floor where my dear wife had rearranged the curtains to allow for more sunlight into the room. The had a small winery that produced some nice tasting wines.

We came across this during our visit to the Tomassi Viticolltori winery. It was an all cork replica of the Verona Arena. Looks like another idea for the cork master designer.