Advertisement
Dear Family & Friends:
Switzerland was so amazing, and the weather so wonderful, that it was a sad and tearful departure when we had to say goodbye to both the country and to Ken's mother, Marilyn, on June 29. Marilyn went on to visit friends in Germany while we took a series of trains south from Interlaken to Milan, Italy, and then east to Descenzano, which is on the southernmost tip of lake Garda, the largest lake in Italy. We arrived on a Sunday, which meant that everyone in town had the day off and was out enjoying the restaurants, gelato shops, boating, and swimming. There was definitely a party atmosphere in this lakeside town and it was a great introduction for our family to Italy.
This was the one town, out of our entire trip, that we did not have a hotel room reserved. It was a bit of an adventure going by taxi from the train station down into the center of town and sending Lauren and Ken off into the streets (and alleys) in search of a reasonably-priced family room while Kate and Sam watched the luggage. As it turned out, Lauren spotted a place within
5 minutes that turned out to be just great for our family and very centrally located. We wandered the town, exploring narrow and sometimes steep alleys, at one point coming upon a fortress situated high in the town. We got a huge tub of gelato, which now always includes lemon, dark chocolate, and milk chocolate, to eat in the heat. Then, we walked the lake shore which was full of people and swimmers. Dinner at an outside cafe where we had great fun people watching. Ken and the kids went out in the evening and stumbled upon an outdoor concert. Lauren's description to Kate of the female MC's outfit: "It would be pretty, except for the features that weren't there."
Lake Garda is surrounded by large mountains and streams, with the mountains getting increasingly larger as you go north. Rather than take the bus up the lake to our next stop at the northern end of the lake in Riva, we decided to take the Rapido (fast) boat so that we could see the entire lake. The boat zig-zagged its way up the lake over 2-1/2 hours, with 6 stops before reaching the uppermost tip. We wanted to get
out at every stop, each was so beautifully located and picturesque. Finally, some colors in the buildings, which we have not seen since England.
We then stayed in Riva for 3 nights. Our hotel was a few blocks back from the waterfront and we could open our windows and look down on busy shops and outdoor restaurants. Room has a system where you have to insert your key (a card) into a wall slot inside the room in order for lights to work. Once you remove it to leave the room, lights go out. Very smart. Shock for the kids was the few topless bathers at the lake shore (mostly under 10 and over 60 years old!)....Our first full day, we took a hike along an old road which skirted the edge of the lake, but rising steadily higher. It was a hot and miserable day, but the views were spectacular. Bikes were speeding past us in both directioins, which made it interesting. The second full day, we took a hike to a chapel high on the hillside overlooking Riva. Photos are attached. It, too, was a miserable, hot and humid day, but, again, we were rewarded with beautiful
Bastillion near Riva
Sam with Lake Garda and Ferry in Backgroundviews of the lake (filled with sail boats) and distant mountains.
Riva was also the site of a very sad incident: Kate went to get her hair trimmed (!) and it seems that the non-English-speaking hairdresser did not understand that it had been only 4 weeks since Kate had her hair cut, not 4 months! So, he took off 2 inches, leaving her almost bald (or so it feels to her). So, don't look for any photos of Kate for many weeks without her hat on...
Kids have discovered weinerschnizel and pizza with hotdogs and shrimp (not on the same pizza). Smoking is everywhere, even though not allowed in buildings, but still hard to escape. Hotels have all been very quiet. Lots of Smart cars in major cities - very interesting that they don't look quite so small in Europe, since there are hardly any SUVs here. Of course, with gas at $8/gallon, you can see why, but it is an interesting contrast to the US.
More later. We leave Venice tomorrow for our cruise. Will write about Venice later, probably next week.
K4
Advertisement
Tot: 0.097s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 7; qc: 49; dbt: 0.0452s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Gunga
Carolyn Taylor
Hair cut!
LOL! To be really brave you have to get it colored!! I'm exhausted with all the hiking you're doing and sooooooo envious because I can no longer do it :-( Love hearing about every minute of your trip. I hope to see you in late Aug. when I am in Sh.Fls for the real details. Carolyn