Monday, July 22, 2013

Day 29 - Around and in Lake Como

9:30pm - Santa Maria Rezzonico

We spent our last full day on Lake Como getting around and exploring more of the region.  We took a bus down to Menaggio (because I wanted to avoid the narrow street and parking hassles) and from there we took a ferry over to Varenna.


We really liked Varenna.  It has the old town charm without as much of the touristy hype and crowds.  The train goes there and there are some nice places to stay on the water.  If just Laura and I come back and we're looking for a romantic B&B type experience, we might well stay in Varenna.   The apartment we've rented this trip is great and it's been perfect for our family. The owners, Detlef and Ute,  have been super about everything.  It's quiet and peaceful.  It just wouldn't have lent itself well to a non-driving trip -- unless you had a boat, I suppose. :-)  Most of the time, having a car in Lake Como is a bother.  If I wasn't in the midst of a 28-day European road trip with all my children, I'd have done it differently.  But I am, so let's move on...

After walking around the town and visiting the Chiesa di San Giorgio, we went in search of lunch.  We decided to eat on the terrace at the Hotel Villa Cipressi.  I had some lavarello (locally caught whitefish) done in a butter and wine sauce that was quite good.  After lunch, we strolled through the gardens of Villa Cipressi.  They were impressive.



Detlef had sung the praises of a gelato shop on the sailboat harbor.  We found two and not knowing which one Detlef had meant, we split into groups and tried each.  They were both pretty good.  (But neither was as good as the shop we found in Corniglia... sorry, Detlef. :-)


At that point, we decided it was time to push on and see Bellagio.  We caught the next ferry to take us there.  We'd been warned that it was very touristy and overrun.  The warnings were correct, but we needed to go see for ourselves.  The more satisfying things to see were up the hill, away from the harbor.  We visited a few shops and also the Basilica di San Giacomo, an impressive 11th century Romanesque church.




While on Bellagio, Charlie and I watched a hydrofoil come into the harbor.  They are impressive boats.

Hydrofoil On Lake Como from Dan Douglas on Vimeo.


Having seen Bellagio, we decided that it was time to head back "home" to San Siro.  The day before, we'd visited a beach in Rezzonico and the kids really wanted to return to swim there.  So much so, that we'd been carrying swim suits with us all day.  That plan paid off because when we got off the bus, we walked to Rezzonico and went swimming.  It was a good way to finish the day because we were all hot and tired and the lake felt very refreshing.




After a swim, we went back to the apartment and had a supper with the food we had left.  Tomorrow, we need to leave and wont be able to keep any of the food, so it was a "must go" type of dinner.

After dinner, it started to rain heavily with thunder and lightning.  A very impressive show.

Tomorrow, it's off to Beaune by way of Lucerne, as we head into France for the final weeks of our trip.