We're home

We got up at 5 AM Italian time and got back home about 7 PM Ohio time.  So we grabbed a Quarter Pounder and are in the process of going to bed for about a week.  Thanks for following our month long journey.  It was a blast.

Ciao!

Last two days in Italy

Our last two days in Italy were spent visiting Milan and revisiting the beautiful Lake Como.  Yesterday we were on a mission to find new luggage.  The big suitcase we brought had given up the ghost because of rough treatment on the train trip to Como.  First we checked the stores in Como and couldn’t find anything under about 200 euro.  So we were told there would be an open air market in the southern end of town.  Wow!  What a market.  It was both sides of two streets for about a mile, and solid tables.

 

We found some stuff to buy, but not any large suitcases. 

 Welcome to Milan.  A huge needle and thread greet you.  Milan is known for its fine fabrics.

Another view of the view of the of the needle.  You can see the knot in the thread on the left.

So we took the train to Milan, about an hour trip. 

We wanted to visit Milan anyway to see the sights, especially the fresco of the Last Supper.  Unfortunately, we didn’t plan far enough in advance and could not get a reservation to view the fresco.  But the trip was successful anyway because we did find a new suitcase for a decent price.  And we found a super tourist attraction—a castle dating back several centuries.  The castle has changed functions several times but is now just part of a gigantic public park.  Here are some pictures of some of the things we saw there.

 

Today we took the Funiculare (incline) to the top of the mountain overlooking the Como bay.  The views were really breathtaking.  You could see for miles and miles.  The trip up and down was fun too.  There are two trams that are attached to either end of a huge cable.  A gigantic wheel turns and pulls one tram up the incline as it allows the other to go down.  The two trams travel the same tracks except in the very center where the rails split and the two trams pass each other…cool engineering.

 

Then we spent the rest of the afternoon taking the ferry again to visit Tremezzo and Villa Carlotta...  We had lunch at the famous Red and White Restaurant in Tremezzo.  It was a great meal with a million dollar view.  Our table was almost on the road as you can see in the picture below, but it was worth it for the view of the lake and the mountains.  It would be the perfect place to live if it only had a bowling alley!

 Two pics from the Red and White.  The second pic was taken from our table which was almost on the highway!

This picture was taken in Tremezza just walking up the sidewalk.

If you want a patio and pool for your hotel and there is no land available, you simply build it into the lake like the Hotel Grand Tremezza did.

From the restaurant it was just a 10 minute walk to Villa Carlotta, a centuries old estate that has been converted to a museum.  The mansion itself contained many completely intact marble statues and plaster replicas of great works.  The garden was acres and acres of plants and flowers.  Unfortunately we didn’t give ourselves enough time to explore it very much.  (I kept thinking what a wonderful place for a golf course…I guess it’s time to go home.)

 

We get picked up at the hotel at 6:15 AM (Italian time) for a trip to the airport.  We should be back in Cleveland at about 6:30 PM (Cleveland time).

Here are some more pictures from our excursion today.  

 If it isn't motor scooters it's sea planes.

The closest thing we saw to a beach along the lake.

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Boating Lake Como

Mother Nature outdid herself when she created Lake Como.  We are staying at the Hotel Barchetta Excelsior, which overlooks the lake and is just steps from the pier where you can take one of several boats to explore the lake.  We chose the “slow boat” that makes about a dozen stops and ends up at Varenna (no that is not a misspelling of Ravenna, but quite coincidental).  There is a “fast boat” (a hydrofoil) that whisks you all the way to the northern shores of the lake, but it is difficult to take pictures on this boat, so we chose the slower one and went only about half way up the lake.

 The city of Como from the lake

Lake Como floods the valley among the many mountains making their way into the Swiss Alps.  In the northernmost parts of our voyage we could see the snowcapped mountains of Switzerland, but for the most part we saw mountains high enough that the tops were beyond the tree line.

 Look hard and you can see the snow capped alps in the background.

One of many harbors along the lake.

Another harbor in Varenna

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Most of the towns and villages along the way were close to the shore, where they began as fishing towns.  Yet there are several towns high up on the sides of the mountains as well. 

The houses are located on the terraced hills, with roads carved into the sides as if chiseled out.  Huge bridges fill in where the carving was impossible.

It is hard to keep from taking a picture every few seconds.  Today we took over 400 pictures while on the boat and during our brief trips to the cities of Bellagio and Varenna.

Bellagio was our primary destination for the day, and it was well worth the trip.  Lake Como looks like an inverted Y and Bellagio is situated at the point where the two lower parts are joined.  

 Coming into Bellagio.  The lake splits into two legs here and the town is right between them.

When you get off the boat you are immediately faced with a long flight of cobblestone steps.  You can’t really see how far you have to climb to reach the top, so you just start climbing.  The path up the steps is flanked with all manner of stores and restaurants.  We stopped at a coffee shop about half way up to catch our breaths and have a cappuccino and a cup of tea.

 

 

When we reached the top we found some wonderful shops where we found genuine Italian clothes, cheeses, salamis, and other fine stuff.  We filled our backpack with loot and headed back down in time to catch the next boat to Varenna.

Varenna was not quite as commercial as Bellagio, but had some wonderfully photographic opportunities.  We even got a lesson on creating the cobblestone paths.

 The view from Varenna toward Como.

Just another beautiful town with the church as a central feature.

The ride back was on a much bigger boat, but it needed to be.  At the second stop we picked up a field trip of about 50 school kids.  They looked to be about 11-12.  They were pretty well behaved…I noticed that they were pretty conscientious about throwing away their trash.  But the longer we went, the louder they got.  It confirmed my decision to retire.

Tomorrow we will take a train back to Milan to do some looking around and maybe some more shopping.  One of the things on our list is a new suitcase, as ours bit the dust on the train from Venice.  The trains don’t really have enough storage for suitcases and such—at least not when they are filled to capacity as this one was.  Stuff is crammed everywhere and luggage is constantly shifting and falling into the aisles.  As nice as the rail system is, this is a problem.

 These last two pics are of a nice little house on the lake.  I put in a bid for this place and if my bid is accepted I become the gardener.

 

Last day in Venice

The last day, so we have to catch up on things we missed.  We had to tour the Basilica of St. Mark, had to visit the glass factories in Murano, and had to take a gondola ride.

Let's start with the Basilica.  It was a one hour guided tour, but we were told no pictures.   So I think I may have been the only person in the place who didn't take any.  It was a work of art inside.  The entire ceiling (and there was plenty of it) was filled with mosaic tiles depicting Christ and the apostles.  Most of the tiles were gold, so plenty gaudy.  It took 7 years to complete the building but a hundred years to finish the decorations.

 Every time we look at this building, we notice something else. Notice the golden-winged angles and the golden lion, the symbol of Venice.

The floors of the Basilica are mosaic patterns in different colors of marble.  The floors were once flat, but because of the unstable nature or the soil, the floors are now as wavy as the water in the canal.

Venice is famous for its glass artworks.  The island of Murano is where most of the glass artwork is produced.  We signed up for a free tour of one of the factories.  

 Above one of the glass blowers finishes a vase.  It took about 10 minutes.

Here is a glass horse he completed in about 5 minutes.

After the tour, they take you to the show room where there are hundreds of kinds of glassware and glass objects on display...figurines, glasses, vases, sets of plates, etc.  Of course the idea is for you to purchase something.  We found a nice candy dish, maybe 8 inches around on a short stem.  I figured it would probably cost about 100 euro and maybe 30 more to ship it home.  I almost choked when the salesman said it was 800 euro if I take it with me and 900 if they ship it.  It is still in the showroom.  Oh well, it was a nice boat trip.

When we got back we found a place where you could get a ride on a gondola.  The ride was about 30 minutes down the Grand Canal and into a couple of the small canals.  I am glad it wasn't 35 minutes.

What a good looking couple!

This is one of many huge liners that come up the Grand Canal.

Since there are no trucks to move cargo on the land, everything is moved on boats and then on hand trucks like this.  It is designed so that it can get up and down the steps of the bridges over the canals.

Pigeons are a problem, especially in Piazza San Marco.  A few years ago there were as many as 20,000 of them in the square.  So they passed a law forbidding the feeding of the birds.  Now the population is down to about 2000, but they can still be a nuisance.  Here a lady holds some food in her hand to attract the birds for a picture.  At the many outdoor cafes the pigeons fly right up onto your table to grab a snack.

Thursday is moving day again as we take a train to Milan and transfer to a train to Como.  This is our last stop on our voyage.  We will probably not blog again until Friday.

 

Around Venice

Tuesday was a mostly sunny day with just a few showers in the afternoon with temps in the low 70's.  We went on the walking tour that was rained out on Monday.  Our guide, Rosanna, took us through back streets to see some things we wouldn't normally see or notice and explained things that are not in the tour books.

She explained why tourists get lost so easily.  First, Venice is divided into six districts, and houses and businesses are numbered, like street addresses, from 1 to about 6800.  But they do this in each district so there are six of every number.  One area might be 5300's and the next 2400's, there is no pattern.  Also the  street names are not unique even within each district.  There are hundreds of streets named Calle di Forno, which means "street with an oven" (or bakery).  There are also lots of streets named Marie or Marco, etc.  So they usually give directions by landmarks not street names.

Unlike other cities, there is only one Piazza (meaning square) in Venice, Piazza San Marco (Saint Mark's Square).  The rest of the open areas are referred to as Campo (field) or Corte (Courtyard).  The Piazza was the only open area that was paved from the outset, while the other open areas were grassy or planted with flowers or vegetables.  Most of these areas are now paved as well.  A lawn service would not be a good business in this city.

There is no source of fresh water in Venice except rain water.  So each Campo or Corte has a "well" which is really a cistern.  The Campo has a large paved area with drains that lead to a huge waterproof tank underground.  The water passes through a sand filter and into the tank, then water is pumped from the tank for drinking purposes.

This is the view from our balcony of the courtyard.  The well is covered to protect the water below.  The punishment for poisoning a well is death.

Here is a picture of a spiral staircase at the rear of a "palace".  The story behind the staircase is that the owner wanted a way for his horse to climb to the top floor.

The picture below shows a lone gondolier in this canal.  Gondoliers in Venice have to go to school and pass tests to attain a license.  Only one woman has taken the classes and passed the tests.  She was refused a license, however.  She protested that she was being denied because of her sex, but was told she was denied because she is not a Venician.  She still has a job as a gondolier, however, because she is the private gondolier for one of the hotels in town.  But she cannot work at one of the regular gondola stands in the city.

The only female gondolier in Venice is standing on the gondola dressed in white.

After a nice pizza dinner Pat wanted to have dessert at the Florian Cafe in Piazza San Marco.  The restaurant has been in business since 1720 and serves elegant lunches and desserts presented on silver platters, and served by men in tuxedos.  Tonight they were serving outside in the square and had a five piece ensemble to entertain us.

Look closely at the bill and you will see we paid quite a bit for our indulgence, twice what we paid for our pizza dinner.  This included a 12 euro cover charge for the music.  But it is a once in a lifetime experience.

Below is a picture of a typical bar, where we had lunch.  Bar's are not beer joints like we have at home...you can buy a drink if you want, but mostly they sell sandwiches (panini), coffee, and breakfast and lunch food at reasonable prices.

The guy on the left either works as a gondolier or somebody stole his clothes and he dressed himself from the souvenir vending cart.

And now about 14 seconds of the quintet.  Two other restaurants in the Piazza had similar entertainment.  What a treat!