We start, as all Italian meals start, with antipasto, the pre- pasta. In this case we are having mussels. And I have never seen this many mussels in one place. We feast. Then it is time for the primo piatto, spaghetti with fish. Next up is the secondo piatto, the second plate. Steak from the barbie for them, foil-wrapped fish for us. And the wine glasses are refilled, again and again. Giovanni's father lives in Calabria, at the very tip of the boot, and apparently makes an endless variety of wines natural and fortified. Soon the table is littered with bottles, and the noise level rises as glasses are filled and emptied.
And we reflect on how blessed we are to have found Monica and Giovanni, and Il Gelsomino (jasmine) B&B. It has been so wonderful, so grounding, to spend a day or two here, near the airport, after every leg of our journey. It really is like coming home. And today our hearts and minds (and stomachs!) are so full we can only hope to see Monica and Giovanni in the States sometime.
And we have all but forgotten, well, yesterday, and Bellagio, and Como, and Lecco, and the mountains...
OK, the mountains. While in the Dolomites we drove to the highly-regarded Alpe di Suisi, a high-mountain meadow (elevation is over 2000 meters, more than 7000 feet) surrounded by snow-covered massifs. We parked the car and started hiking. The might-have-been fantastic views of the valley below were obscured by wisps of dense low-lying fog, so we trekked on, ignoring the nominally well-placed benches. After about an hour we reached the "hut," a restaurant where we had coffee and strudel.
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| Bench with, ah, panoramic? view |
Well rested and refreshed we started on the return. Good thing the trail is well marked, because the fog had closed in, and we could see all of five feet (1.52 mtr)! But we made it back, and headed the car down the narrow, winding road (the only kind they've got in this mountainous region!). It was yet another adventure.
Paula lost in the fog high on the mountain
Our next stop was in the city of Merano. What a wonderful town! This is a place where we could really see spending some time. Tall, mature trees shade the streets, which are filled with bicycles and pedestrians. A raging mountain stream runs through the middle of town, and a block away are streets filled with the latest fashions from Milano. One evening we took a late stroll along the stream and up into the hills surrounding the downtown. We had about decided this town topped the charts when it got even better: we came across the public herb garden, winding down the hillside towards downtown. It was getting too dark to fully appreciate it, so we filed that away for a "next time" in this lovely, lovable, livable town.
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| Merano |
We finally left the mountains behind (we stopped taking pictures since there were so many OMG shots) and spent several days around Lago di Como. We had been here some 15 years earlier on our honeymoon and were looking forward to revisiting the lake and the town of Varenna, where we stayed. Alas, you really can't go home again; we found the lake much busier, more crowded, and much more expensive than it had been. Still, we stopped, we strolled through Varenna, we took the passagiata along the shore. Lago di Como is still lovely, and a fine place to visit (and I'm still envious that George Clooney bought an estate here!)
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| Our hotel, 15 years later |
There is so much more, but it is getting late, and we have a plane to catch tomorrow. We will have to catch up on the rest of it in person!
All for now,
P&P
