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Dec 9 -
We woke to more gloom; my phone had been warning of snow for Piedmont since yesterday. Our first stop was The Palace, worried they’d not opened after all, as they were running a wee bit late. But they did open, and they’d prepared the pear custard pastries we’d requested; Bill decided he wanted a second, but they’d only made two. So, we also each ordered a tomato mozzarella croissant. For caffeine, Bill chose the Italian Irish coffee, which was served with a flourish; first they steamed the whisky, then poured it into a martini glass lined with chocolate and cream, then came the coffee, which was poured on top of the whisky. Extra whisky and coffee were included on the side, wow, €6. https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...ea5f5fddf8.jpg The Palace I had espresso, served with a block of dark chocolate and topped with cream, delicious, €3. We were also each given a complimentary shot of chocolate/coffee liqueur, a tiny glass of water and cookies. https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...b5aa65e5fd.jpg The Palace We both loved The Palace, and were bummed that they’d be closed for the remainder of our stay (€34 including €8 for a small bottle of lemon liqueur, which actually made it back to the US). Afterwards, we walked up to Sacre Monte di Orta, a Roman Catholic devotional complex situated above Orta San Giulio on the summit of San Nicolao, a protected World Heritage site and home to 20 chapels and some 375 statues. On the way, we popped into Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta, the parish church of Orta San Giulio. https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...f37f151274.jpg Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...096360fc3f.jpg Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...b658b71f71.jpg Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta The religious significance of these seemingly ubiquitous “sacred mounts” is lost on us, but we do enjoy a walk, so we made the climb via more moss-covered cobblestones and then wandered amongst the chapels. With the exception of a nearby leaf-blower, it was peaceful up here and we had it almost to ourselves. https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...fcb98d3c37.jpg Sacre Monte di Orta https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...a61e1b02da.jpg Sacre Monte di Orta https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...162df57098.jpg Sacre Monte di Orta https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...a8b0b87b9e.jpg Sacre Monte di Orta After visiting most of the chapels, we tried to return the way we’d come, but could not find the trail. We eventually found an alternate route - this one very steep, but with a handrail - which we followed back down to town, ending up at the opposite end of Orta San Giulio; a nice 2.5 mile, two hour wander. https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...b06401556c.jpg Walk back down from Sacre Monte di Orta https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...b31a3d13d6.jpg Our route Best as we could tell there were only two boats per day from Orta San Giulio to Isola San Giulio operating this time of year (9 am and 2 pm), so we walked to Piazza Motta, planning to take the 2 pm boat, which was just leaving with a group of three. A man called the boat back, we boarded and paid €5 each for the return trip. We were told we had 30 minutes on the island before the boat returned to Orta San Giulio, so we first explored the basilica (no photos allowed) and then walked around the tiny island. The English speaking guide with the two other passengers on the boat told them the island was home to “70 nuns and one old woman”. https://www.visitlakeorta.com/attraz...of-san-giulio/ https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...631f2aa134.jpg Isola San Giulio https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...f5abb54435.jpg Isola San Giulio https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...b0b1ac2462.jpg Orta San Giulio as seen from Isola San Giulio https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...22dff49ae3.jpg Isola San Giulio https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...bf22e37aa0.jpg Isola San Giulio https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...3b4bcc0422.jpg Isola San Giulio https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...b45e0740cb.jpg Isola San Giulio https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...a54b322e3b.jpg Isola San Giulio https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...f31258569c.jpg Our boat Back in the village, we had one final glass of wine at Re di Coppe, trying the Falanghina. The wine bar would close at 3 pm today and would stay closed until just before Christmas; our food options were getting smaller by the day (€5 per glass). Nicolò had kindly made a booking for us at Al Boeuc wine bar for the next two nights, so that evening Bill tried their steak tartare (€15) and I had the polenta with cheese (€7.50) washed down with wine, but of course (€36 total). The food was pretty good and there was only one other person in the tiny restaurant, making me wonder how the establishments of Orta San Giulio dealt with the summer hordes. https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...eeee8c1e26.jpg Al Boeuc, steak tartare Afterwards we walked through the dark and deserted village; nothing open except another place for drinks where we overheard an employee talking to a passing woman who was looking for a place to eat, telling her how quiet it is this time of year and how much he liked it that way. Despite the constant snow warnings, it never did materialize. To be continued... |
Dec 10 -
My phone was now advising a 70% chance of rain. As far as I know, there is no tourist office in Orta San Giulio, and had there been one, it’d have been closed anyway. I’d looked online and discovered that the nearest tourist office was in Stresa and it covered Lake Maggiore, Lake Orta, Lake Mergozzo and the Ossola Valley. Fortunately, Nicolò had been an excellent resource and graciously offered his help. We asked if he could recommend a longer hike for today and he had suggested hiking up to the Torre di Buccione, and had provided detailed walking directions. We'd also asked about the buses, as we hadn't yet seen one, and he said they only connect the villages between Domodossola-Novara much like the train, but they are not useful for 'tourist' destinations. https://www.illagomaggiore.com/en_US/26124,Poi.html So, we donned our wet weather gear and set out to find the hike, walking back towards the hamlet of Legro di Orta and Villa Crespi, which we'd passed the other day when walking around the entire peninsula. From there we turned right and walked to the hamlet of Corconio, a very small ancient village. https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...e8ef09c2a9.jpg Walking towards Corconio We then veered left, following a path with a blue/green trail marker behind the church. The trail began to climb, leading us through shin deep leaves, chestnut forests and eventually over more moss-covered rocks. Some 1:45 later we were in Lortallo, which we thought was our destination, as the timing seemed right, but we looked at Google Maps and discovered we were still a 26 minute, straight uphill hike away. https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...8cd401fa1b.jpg Lortallo https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...5a91896409.jpg Lortallo https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...08346af3bf.jpg Lortallo https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...79e028c92b.jpg Lortallo We sat on the ledge of a building, had a snack, and then decided we’d had enough, so we backtracked the way we'd come. On our descent, we discovered where we'd missed the path - we should have continued in front of the church instead of heading up the path behind it. We could now see the tower ahead and above, but didn't feel like going any further. https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...0658b0ad30.jpg Return hike https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...a2956e8592.jpg Overgrown path https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...0772d64876.jpg A bit of color on a gloomy day https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...4dabf79700.jpg Corconio church https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...55be9881d2.jpg Return to Orta San Giulio So, we continued down, soon passing Villa Crespi again, me noticing the Crossroads Bistro across the street. We walked over to see if it was open; it was, so we settled in and ordered a drink and a shared bruschetta caprese. It was so good and fresh that we ordered a second one, and then ordered a panna cotta to share. A great find this, €39.50 with an Aperol spritz, a beer and 1.50 each coperto. https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...fd6cb4f2d1.jpg Bruschetta Caprese Afterwards we returned to Orta San Giulio, now raining, the going slow due to wet leaves and slippery moss-covered rocks and cobblestones. https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...94e4ca77ed.jpg Lake Orta We enjoyed this 6.3 mile hike; it was a mixed bag of asphalt, cobblestones, deep leaves, grass, and prickly vines; some sections looked as if no one had hiked through them in a very long time due to the overgrown brush. Orta San Giulio was deserted and quiet, nothing open except a shop selling cashmere, the shop keeper bored to tears. We returned to the apartment to rest; and then later returned to Al Boeuc for our dinner booking. The menu options were very limited so Bill chose the steak tartare again (€15). No polenta tonight, so I chose the bruschetta, half of which was topped with my most hated cheese, Gorgonzola, (€12), choked down with a glass of Cortesedi Gavi (€37 total). https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...d0b86a41ba.jpg Al Boeuc After dinner we walked through deserted Orta San Giulio one last time. https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...c0867b7c46.jpg Isola San Giulo after dark https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...89cc03358b.jpg Orta San Giulio after dark https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...2ab3ff81bb.jpg Orta San Giulio after dark https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...57ad21361d.jpg Orta San Giulio after dark Impressions of Orta San Giulio Although we felt a bit captive, we enjoyed our time in very sleepy Orta San Giulio and feel lucky to have had this very busy summer destination almost entirely to ourselves for four nights. We weren’t bored, and we didn't go hungry, although the food was a bit hit and miss. The highlights were The Palace and Crossroads Bistro. No complaints about the wine though. We loved the Air BNB and Nicolò was a fantastic host. We would have been in a bind had he not offered to take us to the grocery store and make bookings for us; and the ride to/from the train station was much needed due to distance and terrain. To be continued... |
Dec 11 -
There are few things I like less than setting the alarm on vacation, but that’s what we did, getting up at 5:30, packing, tidying the apartment and meeting Nicolò at the door at 7:30. He had an early appointment; there were only three trains a day from Orta San Giulio to Novara, so we’d arranged for him to take us to the train station early to catch the 8:04 am train, which would put us in Bellano before lunch. For the first time since we arrived, sunshine was expected, but of course it was dark when we left. We’d purchased our train tickets to Novara and then on to Bellano via Milan Centrale online the previous night (€13.20 each). We’d considered stopping in Milan for a few hours, but decided it was too much of a pain with luggage, having to book tickets separately, and then possibly arriving in Bellano after dark. There was no signage on the platform or on the grubby Trenitalia train to Novara, but so few trains go through here that we knew it had to be ours. The closer to Novara we got, the busier the train became. In Novara, we changed to another Trenitalia train to Milan Centrale, no signage for this train either. Once in Milan Centrale, we easily found our Trenord train to Bellano, this one much nicer - clean and with a working destination and platform display. Unsurprisingly, all three trains were late. Our journey from Milan to Bellano took us through Varenna, where most of the train passengers got off. From the train Varenna looked plenty busy, even this time of year. For those unaware, Varenna is a centuries old fishing village and tourist hot spot, situated about an hour north of Milan. It’s home to Villa Monastero and is the departure point for ferries to many towns along Lake Como, including Bellagio, Menaggio and Como. We arrived in Bellano, “the town of artists” around 11:30 am; enroute our Air BNB host had advised we could check-in early and explained how to collect the key from Bagless, a luggage and key storage facility. https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...f529340dff.gif Lake Como Map The walk from the train station to the apartment was a bit stressful, as there were no sidewalks, and we had to dodge fast moving cars as they whipped around blind corners, but we arrived unscathed (and later found a less dangerous route). The two-bedroom apartment was exceptionally well-located, just a stone’s throw from the waterfront and several cafes and coffee shops. From the bathroom window we could see the lake and foreshore, hear piped holiday music, and look into the windows of a café below. After getting settled we went out looking for lunch, taking the path of least resistance and choosing Cafe Arrigoni directly across the street. Here we had pizza - not the best or the worst of the trip, washed down with 1/2 liter of house wine (€29.50 with €2 each coperto). We next sought out the tourist office, but the employees didn’t seem interested in helping us, choosing to refer us to brochures instead. We then located the Eurospin and Conad where we picked up a few provisions, then headed out again, spending a few hours exploring our new base. We walked from one end of town to the other, soaked up the sun from a bench overlooking the lake, and then worked our way through the labyrinth of narrow cobblestone alleyways tucked behind the businesses that line the lake. https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...24d6ae028e.jpg Wandering Bellano https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...73ab573cc5.jpg Wandering Bellano https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...eb3a7a0606.jpg Wandering Bellano https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...fd90df2273.jpg Above the rooftops, Bellano https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...9318a097eb.jpg Wandering Bellano https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...5ff8bd9619.jpg Wandering Bellano https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...cb92096abb.jpg Wandering Bellano https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...7aac6ff6e8.jpg Wandering Bellano https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...9cab9a9382.jpg Wandering Bellano https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...44ee109221.jpg Wandering Bellano https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...92fad5e611.jpg Chiesa Santi Nazaro Celso https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...265baf1ae9.jpg Chiesa Santi Nazaro Celso https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...21707693e2.jpg Wandering Bellano https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...7f3ca07317.jpg Wandering Bellano It’d been a balmy 48F during the afternoon, but cold and windy when we went back out later, returning to Arrigoni Cafe for aperitivo, €9. https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...ab766588b1.jpg Bellano after dark https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...3e35084143.jpg Bellano lakefront after dark To be continued... |
Very peaceful and uncrowded, your off season time for travel looks very appealing.
I love your photos. |
Thank you Adelaidean - when do you leave for NZ?
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Love the Orta San Guilio photos and the Bellano photos. There certainly is something to be said for traveling in the off-season, uncrowded and quiet, but the winter is too cold for us. We will be in Varenna during the first week of June. Looking forward to it, but I know it will be crowded.
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Mel, 2 weeks to go! I love when it gets close.
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Mel, your nocturnal shots are some of the best we've seen among TRs here. Plus your itinerary took us all into some intriguing locations. And oh my, that food imagery!
I'm done. The dentist |
Adelaidean - not long now - I think you'll love NZ.
Karen - I'm sure you'll have a wonderful time. Thanks zebec, will try to get more posted today. |
Dec 12 -
We’d worried about noise since the apartment was so close to the busy road that skirts the lakefront through Bellano, but it was very quiet with the windows closed, and that piped music stopped around 9 pm. There was very little noise from other apartments in the building, and we had access to a washer and an elevator, which is always a perk. While spacious, the apartment was oddly configured, so a lot of that space felt wasted. Our day began with a search for caffeine, choosing the tiny, one-man operated Truth, right around the corner from the apartment. Here we had weak caffè macchiatos and very good croissants, chocolate for me, blueberry for Bill (€8.40). I loved the tiny little shops and cafes tucked away in the alleyways, many hidden behind large doors without signs as had been the case in Orta San Giulio, us not aware of their existence until they opened later in the day. A beautiful sunny day was expected, so we walked to the train station and bought tickets for the 9:30 am Trenord train to Varenna from the station coffee shop/bar (€1.50 each, one way). We stood on the platform in the dark cold, the sun not reaching the eastern side of the lake yet, an announcement telling us our train would be an optimistic 15 minutes late. Thirty minutes passed, our train finally arrived, and five minutes after departing Bellano, we were deposited in neighboring Varenna, most of the journey through a tunnel. We’d planned on taking the 10:10 am ferry to Menaggio, but figured we’d missed it as we still had to walk down to the ferry terminal from the Varenna train station, but as luck would have it, we arrived at the ticket window just as the ferry was arriving. We purchased tickets to Menaggio and return (€18.40 for both) then walked right on to the ferry, sweet. The last time we were in Varenna (October 2023) the waterfront was a madhouse, but today, it was downright peaceful; there were only five of us on the ferry. Once in sleepy Menaggio we walked along the lakeshore promenade, enjoying the sunshine and taking in the views. We then skirted the beach, worked our way up towards the cemetery and then back down the winding streets to the town center. https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...5e1b97817d.jpg Menaggio https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...a7514cf034.jpg Menaggio https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...2354004a2b.jpgMenaggio https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...75efd2a46d.jpg Menaggio, pop up ice rink, we saw these in several towns in Italy. Some had a plastic surface, instead of icehttps://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...8cc09fd4a2.jpg Menaggio https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...bf2ada7264.jpg Menaggio cemetery https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...f5280fd05d.jpg Menaggio cemetery https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...2699ec5742.jpg Menaggio cemetery https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...1d561f5ca1.jpg Menaggio cemetery https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...d38dea8bca.jpg Menaggio https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...57d800ba62.jpg Menaggio We popped into Pesin Tipo Un Bistro near Piazza Garibaldi for a glass of grape and were brought a generous plate of snacks while we waited for their kitchen to open for lunch. We eventually ordered, opting to share a caprese salad and an order of ravioli with radish and speck, both very good (€46, no coperto). Over lunch we discussed what we wanted to ask at the Menaggio tourist office since the Bellano tourist office hadn't been much help, but we’d soon find that it was closed for the season. I was most interested in Menaggio’s Christmas Market, which I’d read about, but had been unable to find any details on. So, we went back to the restaurant to ask if they knew anything about the Christmas Market - the waitress consulted with a customer and told us it will be held in Nobiallo, which she estimated was a 30 minute walk from Menaggio, at 10 am this Saturday. We didn’t pursue it, but I have since looked up Nobiallo, which is a historic hamlet north of Menaggio. https://mylakecomo.co/en/attractions...allo-menaggio/ We then walked uphill from Piazza Garibaldi hoping to find an overlook. We inadvertently stumbled upon a historical path which led us up a series of cobblestone steps to the ancient medieval village of Castello in the upper part of town, logging about 3.2 miles. https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...da33574e52.jpg Wandering Menaggio https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...9ec9e1dfeb.jpg Wandering Menaggio https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...0a663c891f.jpg Wandering Menaggio https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...5f626e5f42.jpg Overlooking Menaggio https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...b6199c6442.jpg Wandering Menaggio Feeling that we’d pretty much covered Menaggio, we eventually returned to the lakefront and walked right on to a ferry that was departing at 2:45. Sweet again. The sun was now on the eastern side of the lake, Varenna gleaming as our ferry approached. https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...d48e49ad07.jpg Approaching Varenna https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...309bb0c131.jpg Approaching Varenna Once on shore, we followed the waning sun to the “walk of lovers”, a short pedestrian path cantilevered over the water that is said to “afford romantic views of Lake Como, the mountains, and the small village”, true that. https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...154da4a9ac.jpg Varenna https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...e7662c228c.jpg Varenna https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...76c259f7c6.jpg Varenna Unable to pass up an open gelato shop, we popped in for scoops of chocolate, vanilla and salted caramel for me €4, and scoops of pistachio and salted caramel for Bill €3, both really enjoying the salted caramel. We continued our wander and met a friendly cat. https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...f5dd5bc1f3.jpg Varenna https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...58bb4e3bea.jpg Varenna Not much was open in Varenna, but the few places that were had no shortage of customers. We considered stopping at one of them for a drink, but it closed just as we got there. We eventually returned to the ferry terminal and then worked our way back up to the train station. At the train station we bought return tickets to Bellano (€1.50 each) and realizing this was also an information office, asked for details on the Como Christmas Markets, but the woman manning the desk couldn’t find any details other than to tell us that she thought the Christmas light show had been moved to Cannobio. We were finding information pretty thin on the ground. The Varenna train station is home to an inviting bistro, so we decided to take a later train and have a glass of grape while we waited, choosing a local white from Como and a red from a nearby valley (€11). Not only was the wine excellent and served in nice stemware, we were brought a cornucopia of snacks, reinforcing our love of Italian aperitivo. https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...6352538465.jpg Varenna train station Back in Bellano, we sought out a tiny wine bar we’d noticed the day before - Bellanasco, the proprietor enjoying a glass at one of the tables when we arrived. We were the only customers at first, but were soon joined by a group of local old guys, who’d gathered for a bit of wine swilling and conversation. As we sipped, we watched them come and go, and invite the proprietor to pour a glass from their bottle. Then an employee arrived, poured himself a glass of wine behind the bar and joined the conversation. It was fun to watch the ebb and flow of this village wine bar; and the wine was excellent (€23). Then it was back to the apartment to do laundry, which took a painful 2.5 hours. To be continued... |
Hi Mel,
I'm really enjoying another fantastic trip report and great photos. Thanks for including us in your travels. |
Hi marg - good to see you here!
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Dec 13 -
We woke to temps of 29 F and a train strike. We’d asked about the strike at the Bellano train station the previous day, and were told no one knew which lines would be affected until it actually happened. I’ve since read that train strikes in Italy occur 2-3 times a month. We returned to Truth for caffeine and croissants, Bill asking for a double shot of espresso in his caffè macchiato this time, me choosing a cappuccino (€7.90). We really liked this tiny coffee/drinks bar. Then we walked to the tourist office to try again, hoping for some info on the best way to visit Como, lucking into a more helpful woman this time. She suggested we take the fast ferry to Como instead of the train, as the train strike would affect the area after 1 pm, so there might be issues getting back. Unfortunately, getting to/from Varenna to take the fast ferry presented issues of its own, as did the limited fast ferry schedule. So, we decided to avoid the potential stress and just stay in Bellano today. After reviewing the hiking map we’d picked up at the tourist office, we decided to undertake Trail #4, “Discovering the Olive Groves” which was advertised as 4 km, 1:30 with a 300-meter elevation gain. The hike began behind the train station, where we were immediately faced with what felt like 1,000 cobblestone steps. We zig-zagged up the mountain, soon finding ourselves on the Sentiero Del Viandante, the Wayfarer's Path, a 70 km network of mule tracks and paths suspended between the mountain and the eastern shore of Lake Como. The hike led us alongside olive groves and ancient buildings, providing expansive views of the lake. https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...8cf4556d99.jpg Hiking above Bellano https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...110af0b49d.jpg Hiking above Bellano https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...d967389263.jpg Hiking above Bellano We walked alongside the Church of St Andrea and continued through the adorable hamlet of Bonzeno, decked out for the holidays. https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...ead3fe984d.jpg Bonzeno https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...55164219ab.jpg Bonzeno https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...36ec9d28db.jpg Bonzeno https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...f3ce51d340.jpg Bonzeno Here we lost the trail, following a road towards Pegnino (Trail #5) before figuring out we'd made a mistake, then backtracked to Bonzeno, where we re-located the trail and worked our way towards and through Biosio (Trail #5), then through Rivalba, and back down to Bellano, completing our loop. https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...c2ca421a59.jpg Losing the trail https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...86998b1114.jpg Making friends with the locals https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...387a1b5bcf.jpg Returning to Bellano As so often happens, it wasn’t the hike we intended, but it was enjoyable and varied. We walked for 3:10, logged about 4.5 miles, and gained 1,175 feet of elevation. It was a bit slow going due to the terrain and numerous photo stops. Back in Bellano we popped into Che Pasta for lunch, a business that we didn’t even know was there until it opened. The set-up felt like the Italian version of fast food; one sits on a stool at a counter, reviews the menu, chooses type of pasta and type of sauce, orders and pays at the front counter, and then the meals are delivered. But it certainly didn’t taste like fast food. Bill had a nice carbonara (€11), I had aglio oilo (spaghetti with garlic, olive oil and chili, €10), and we shared a 375 ml bottle of house wine (€32.50 total and very good). https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...48f7fc1def.jpg Che Pasta https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...b8d81e5ccb.jpg Che Pasta Then it was back to the apartment to chill. Dinner that evening was at Ristorante Pizzeria Bernina - salami pizza for Bill (€7.50), cheese and onion pizza for me (€7.50); it was okay, but not the best we’ve had (€24 including wine and coperto), followed by a wander along the lake. https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...4b5706b3ae.jpg Bellano after dark https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...676dd948d3.jpg Bellano after dark To be continued... |
The towns around Lake Como look picturesque and fun to wander. It's been in my mind for a bit but have avoided it due to crowds and cost.
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BLUE SKIES!!! and the pasta at the "fast food joint" looks so good.
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Hi Mel
I'm really enjoying your trip. Great photos. Love the cats. Carry on! |
Thanks Mel, for sharing your trip. Love all the photos.
Kay |
Lake Como wouldn't be crowded in the winter, but, as Mel points out, a lot would be closed.
We were there in May and it was very crowded, almost entirely with English-speaking tourists. I'm not sure what month would be best. |
Appreciate the comments - definitely not crowded in winter, which is why we were there, but it's always a trade off. And yes, so happy to see blue skies!
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Wow! Melnq8, I really appreciate your photos of Varenna and Menaggio since we will be staying in Varenna the first week of June. It's nice to see Varenna without the crowds since that won't be the case for us. But, as you say, it's always a trade off.
Love the photos of your hike in Bellano, too. And Bellano after dark! |
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