Italy 36 - that garden and the presents

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On our way to Isola Bella we passed the small but pretty fishermans island. Perhaps another day we would visit it but today it was our visit to the gardens on Isola Bella. Isola Bella is one of the Borromean Islands. The island is situated in the Borromean Gulf 400 meters from the lakeside town of Stresa . Isola Bella is 320 meters long by 400 meters wide and is entirely occupied by the Palace and its Italianate gardens.

Upon Isola Bella we stumbled on the usual stalls selling leather bags, scarves of every shape and colour - scarves I cannot resist , ice creams again something I cannot resist , fridge magnets and T-shirts. And more restaurants and cafes than you could shake a stick at.

The castle itself was grim and austere from the outside not the most prettiest castle I have seen but the inside was a revelation and the many rooms put some of our stately homes to shame. It was light and airy with hgh ceilings which were painted in white and egg shell blue. There was very little dark wood or gilded paintwork that we are used to . As an interior it was stunning in parts. The lower rooms were designed as grottoes with stone pebble floors and every conceivable inch of the walls covered in pebbles. Not to our taste but it must have turned heads in its day and then there were the views through the windows to die for. On a clear day they would be stunning. I could understand wanting to live here. It must have be idyllic.

Then outside to the gardens where we found signs apologising for the storm damage which had affected many of the plants and trees. There was also much work going on repairing the balustrades which in parts were crumbling away and dangerous. The garden is made up of a serious amount of hard landscaping , is terraced and is divided into a series of rooms. There was a monumental fountain covered in statues, edged with staircases and with a front that looked like a Lombardese cathedral. A bit over the top but a centrepiece for the garden. The steps led to an upper terrace with beds of Begonias, pots of Plumbago plants and large Hydrangea plants. In one corner stood an aviary full of extremely noisy love birds. On the lawns were white peacocks roaming in between the flower beds. On the lower levels were box hedges and a small pond full of the most exquisite water lilies in colours I have never seen before – deep crimson, light lilac and pretty pinks. Here were none of the boring white lilies we see so often. High walls were covered with limes and other fruits unknown to either of us. And in pots oranges and lemons. What a garden – different to many we have seen before and in the height of summer it must be stunning. If you are a garden lover we highly recommend a visit. There was so much to see and as nothing was on the same level it took some while to wander from garden room to garden room admiring the planting along the way.

We left for the 5 minute ferry over to the nearby town of Stresa. Lunch was the first thing we needed and we found a little tea room on the front for paninis with coffee and apricot cake.

Stresa is more commercialised and busy than Baveno with more tourists.. It has a long promenade along which are the large hotels and some tat shops. We sat for a while watching the boat traffic on the lake, the trout swimming in the lake and the ducks. Behind the promenade in a myriad of lanes where we found designer shops, shops selling regional soaps whose scent wafted through the air, regional food products of every conceivable shape and size, colourful ceramics and leather goods. We purchased a bag embroidered with our mother in laws name which will house her knitting materials. It was lovely to see the goods outside the shop even though it was closed for lunch. At home they would have been stolen. And even nicer to watch the shop owner sewing the names onto the goods as we waited. We bought another apron embroided with a name which will be used for another Christmas present. We have never seen these at home and they looked quite different and interesting. I wish I had bought a bag for myself but then you never think of it when you have the chance. It only comes to you when it is too late.

Stresa was perhaps a place we hadn’t intended visiting but it turned out to be another little gem. To be highly recommended particularly when the weather is nice and the sun shining.

On our way home we caught the ferry back to Isola Bella and were just in time for an ice cream vanilla and limone and whilst waiting for our connection back to Baveno I managed to to buy another blue scarf to add to my collection. I now have four - one bright post box red, and two others in lilac and white and grey and white. Next time I need a purple or a mink coloured one - i could go on forever.

Home to a milky coffee and feet up in readiness for moving on tomorrow . Today we managed to take in a garden and a castle and went on a boat trip – oh yes and we got presents . Tomorrow to Pavia for more culture and on to Bologna our first Italian city of the trip.

Contents

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Photos

Isola Bella
Ferry time table

Isola Bella
a water lily

Isola Bella
The gardens

Isola Bella
another water lily