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Published: September 6th 2014
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The air always seems cleaner in Italy, the country more vibrant, the people full of life. As they did their nightly passagiata we rounded our night off by catching the boat from Garda to the nearby town of Bardalino. At a cost of 6 euros one way it was fairly good value as it gave us a different perspective on Garda from the water, our campsite and Bardalino itself. The trip took 15 minutes and the air was most certainly bracing on the lake. It gave us the opportunity though to see the sun setting on the water and what a pretty silvery sight it was.
A much larger town than Garda Bardolina is a stopping off point for the boats plying their trade on the lake. The town felt bigger than Garda and much more busy. It felt one extreme to the other. Again there were more restaurants than you could shake a stick at. Had we wanted a meal we were spoilt for choice. Pizza restaurants by the score. Restaurants that specialised in pesce and others pasta.
Inside from the lakeside were the usual selection of tat shops and the more upmarket ones again. We
sat for a while watching the miniature jet deau fountain, the boats coming in and ate ice creams sitting on a bench . Orange and vanilla . Boy do the Italians know how to make ice cream. Huge dollops in a cone. It is easy to buy too much and waste it as they pile it on. And the list of flavours is endless from the most simple to concoctions made up of anything you can think. The number of flavours seem to grow year on year and with more choice it makes the choosing ever harder to do.
Finally we walked the 1 and a quarter km walk along the lakeside from Bardolina to Garda. As darkness fell the lights came on twinkling on the lake bathing it in a different light . The sun set leaving a silvery path across the lake . We felt as if we were finally on holiday. The drive down had been long and we had used up quite a bit of our precious holiday going east and having to come back. By flying you can get up at 4, drive to Manchester, sit around waiting for the plane, board it, fly
to Bergamo and be here by dinnertime. In a motorhome driving takes four days if you come by the straightest route. Suzy has excelled though as on the way we have seen some wonderful things we wouldnt have seen from a plane. We have driven through the Alps and Dolomites and seen them close up and personal. We have even managed 29. 3 mpg which is unheard of in Suzy. Which way would I prefer ? Goes without saying.
And so to bed . Not a quiet one. Too many late night revellers walking back along the waterfront from their nightly revels. This seems a campsite spoilt by the noise of the campers packed in cheek by jowl. The entertainments are noisy and the folks being entertained come in late talking loudly unaware just how much their voices carry. The midnight revellers talk as they walk back along the shoreline to home. And in the early hours of the morning the early morning bikers or joggers take over. Each talking or perhaps shouting is the operative word to each other. We had planned to stay three days but it is looking most likely after tomorrow we may move on in the hope of hunting down a quieter campsite. That is the beauty of motorhoming. If you like the place you stay. if you hate it ..............well you either put up with it or do the sensible thing move on. There is always another campsite which might be better than the last one. There is always another village or town to see and who knows what is just round the corner or up the next hill.
Tomorrow to Sirmione and whatever else we decide to do.
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D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley
Small towns
Italy has so much to offer in ambiance and architecture. Beautiful