Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
A (relatively) easy trip yesterday from Turin to Bellagio - fast train to Milan, slow train to Varenna, short ferry to Bellagio and quick taxi to hotel.
Unfortunately our choice of hotel is disappointing. Hotel Ristorante La Pergola is a family owned and run smallish hotel on Lake Como but the family appear to resent having paying guests and are rude and unhelpful. The location of the hotel is also a problem as it is about 100 steps up from town and again another 100 steps down the other side of the hill and there is nothing here even though it is on the lake (just the wrong side). The hotel is advertsied with a lovely onsite restaurant but they have decided to close the restaurant without warning and there are no others in walking distance. So we find ourselves isolated in what used to be a nunnery??? Nice old building and no ghosts so far so we have a bottle of local red and some nice cheese as well as some chocolate for the evening.
We had a lovely day today travelling on the ferry all the way down Lake Como from Bellagio first to Lenno to visit the local market and then on to Cernobbio for lunch. Lunch was my treat from Erika as a late birthday celebration and it was a perfect location with lovely food. We both had the local specialty of rissotto with grilled local fresh fish with sage and butter - beautifully prepared with lovely Pinot Nero (local).
A quick walk to Villa d'Este after lunch before we hopped back on the ferry back to Bellagio - a most enjoyable journey calling into numerous villages along the lake shore as well as a number of famous villas with outstanding gardens. All the houses are in shades of ochre and terracotta which blend so well together and really create a very calm and restful ambience. Very little wind today so we were actually able to sit outside on the ferry most of the way even though temperature range today was from 4 to about 17 but sunny most of the day.
Last night we stopped in at Enoteca wine bar down near the ferry wharf here in Bellagio - wonderful little place like a cosy den with arched stone lined roof and walls lined with bottles of interesting Italian wines of all kinds and prices. We were the only ones there so we had the full attention of the barman who both served wine and made snacks single-handed. He prepared some bressaola (local air dryed marinated beef) with some local cheese.
Tomorrow we are off to Stresa on Lake Maggiore which involves a return to Milan and then change to another train in the direction of Stresa.
So many hotels and restaurants have already closed up the shutters and disappeared for the winter and the ones that remain open are all probably over dealing with tourists and the atmosphere is a little tired (like us too probably).
- comments