Blogs from Lombardy, Italy, Europe - page 19

Geo: 45.9877, 9.26198After breakfast today we walked to the ferry pier and purchased a mid lake ferry pass for the day and hopped on the ferry to Varenna. Again it was a beautiful day and far warmer than what we had predicted. Varenna looked gorgeous as we approached from the water. Our first task after getting off the ferry was to find the way to hike up to Castello di Vezio to see the castle and view. We asked directions at a local shop and set off on our walk. Wow, what a walk it was! I was actually quite scared at some points as the path, or track would be a better word, was only around 30cm (1 foot) wide in parts, rocky and stony and incredibly steep with no handrail whatsoever. I pretty much ... read more

Geo: 45.9877, 9.26198After a wonderful business class flight, via Dubai, we finally landed in Milan, Italy just after 2.00pm.After collecting our luggage, we found our chauffeur driver waiting and set off for the hour long ride to Bellagio on Lake Como.The drive from the airport to Como town was dull and uninteresting. From Como town however, it became spectacular. A single road runs along the lake with stunning scenery. So glad we were here late in the season, I dread to think how long the drive would have taken with traffic. The only road is a single lane each way, sometimes reducing to simply a single lane so one car needs to pull over. So glad I had a view to keep me occupied. We finally arrived at our hotel in Bellagio - wow, what a ... read more

Motorhoming is a strange creature. On the one hand you have everything you could need from the television to the kitchen sink and can move about dependent on the weather and if you like or hate the place you are staying at. On other hand you need to be very careful where you choose to stay. We were in a bit of a limbo. Our last few days on the lake had gone and we had about 10 days left before we needed to get to Calais for the train home. Leave too soon and you find yourself out of the sunny weather and with nothing to fill the time. Leave too late and you risk not getting back for the train. So what to do? Ideas and thoughts were going round and round our heads. ... read more

Just to wrap things up we decided to spend an hour or so in the pretty town of Salo. Just down the road from Gardone and a 5euro ferry trip. Chance for a bit of people watching, a drink and maybe something to eat. Salo like other towns on the lake cling to the lakeside and do not venture much into the mountains behind. The land is used carefully and the villas gardens reach down to the shoreline. All pink, buttermilk and cream. Pretty things. And so much what you expect an Italian lakeside town to look like. Trees behind climbing the hills completed the pretty picture and cafes and restaurants spilled on the pavements. Shops a few, the usual up market and down town tat. Not a place you can linger long. One main street ... read more

Ok did you read up on Italian history? If not well you will know a bit more after this blog. We got up early and walked the 20 minutes along the lakeside to Maderno to catch our boat to our first destination of the day. The local council lwere out and about tidying up after the storm. Leaves and branches everywhere. Tickets are easy to buy on the lake. The offices selling them are always close to the jetties and the staff are always very helpful. It is fairly expensive to travel the lake but it is the only efficient way to do it. It is a long way round by road particularly in a motorhome. We paid our fee which generally comes to about 9 euros for me and 8 for Glenn . You cannot ... read more