Second day belly-filling mid morning on Turkish kebabs & rice. Not very Italian but certainly more substantial than the native expresso & cigarette start. (People still smoke, seriously?)
Train Thursday, boat queue Friday. I heart European travel.
Purchased a hop-on hop-off day pass but arrived, settled on a single-stop destination: Villa Carlotta in Tremezzo. Y’all know I dig history. No tour of the 17th century villa itself (found myself indoor ‘done’ after 2 days of rain). Today’s OUTDOOR plan: the Villa’s extensive botanical garden.
Rhododendron & azalea. Roses, hydrangea & camellias. Trail-walked thru non-native bamboo, palm. A citrus grove of lemons & oranges. Personal fave? Rustico Pra di Oc, ‘the Rural House’.
Quiet. Peaceful. Located on the trail’s far perimeter, abandoned by old & youth ticket-holders alike. Slow-walked a mile thru the Villa’s olive gardens. Found beauty in the garden’s simple ingredients. The Villa’s tall native grasses, its Mediterranean roots. Bellissima ❤️
Completed the afternoon with another outdoor cappuccino. Two weeks before Easter (official tourist season start), happily secured a table overlooking scenic Lake Como. Perfecto. Check, done.
Concierge coordinated a private rustico dinner in Old Town (off-season perk). Raw fish appetizer, quail, risotto alla Milanese (saffron rice, nutmeg, marrow). Go BIG or go HOME, last nite in Como.
Local train, new hotel. Tomorrow’s memory: Milano.
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- ferry to Tremezzo
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- il Giardino Botanico
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- Museo degli Attrezzi Agricoli
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- Rustico Pra di Oc
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- uliveto (olive tree grove)
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- camellia
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- Lake Como ❤️
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- Oratorio Sommariva
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- Citrusis Tunnel
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- last day in Como
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- risotto alla Milanese
chocolate & cappuccino 🇨🇭
Second day of Spring showers. Bring it on!
Passport in hand (just in case), absolutely no idea what the day holds. It’s unexpected/unplanned/spur-of-the-moment Swiss Day! 🇨🇭
Already captured the indoor sights of Como, spending today’s tourism dollars on a train ride north. Mile stroll to Como’s main station, 9€ (Euro) ticket to SWITZERLAND.
Flag change, currency switch (Swiss francs), same Italiano lingua. Tri-tongue country, Switzerland. German & Italian used in Lugano, country’s southernmost region.
Notta Swiss Miss yodel village. Money town. World fine-brands all represented, its fine cars as well. Mirror-image visual of my Como digs. Lake Lugano fenced by mountains. Cobblestone streets, hill top cathedrals. Billboards, Swiss watch-dominated.
Como v Lugano. Less pasta, less Italian villas – more croissant, more puff pastry. Day’s taste buds saturated on chocolate ganache & cappuccino (trip’s best). Swiss Day 🙂
Appreciate the ease of travel in Europe.
Short 40 minute return to Como. Late dinner, lake cruise in the morning.
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- 9€ travel
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- Swiss Day 🇨🇭
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- Welcome to Lugano
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- cobblestone laden
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- Lake Lugano
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- brands represented
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- German EASTER 🐰
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- hill top cathedrals
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- Cattedrale di San Lorenzo
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- fine cars & cappuccino
Tempio Voltiano
Narrow back alley architecture, cobblestone, 14th century cathedrals & church bells ringing. First day in Europe. Late morning walk, misty spring rain. All smiles.
Stomach grumble. Missed the breakfast hour. Focus shifted to window shopping & statue gazing while awaiting restaurants to re-open. Remember the same experience in Chile – 18 hours ‘til I properly synched up. Probably why Europeans are so thin.
When you do figure it out – mighty amazing eats. Simple, fresh ingredients, homemade sauces. Even cappuccino seems to steep different in Europe. Bellissimo. Thoroughly enjoy the art of food (locate a local bodega, for those of us who snack).
Day highlight: Como Cathedral.
Dinner: (local catch) Branzino, capers, homemade butter & olives. Molto bene!
Forecast sunshine Friday. Best day for Lake Como’s hop-on hop-off cruise.
Tomorrow? More Spring rain. After looking at the map (& discussing with the hotel concierge), ya know — Switzerland’s just a short 9 EURO train ticket away 😊
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- Villa Olmo
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- ‘Swan Lake’ Como
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- Statua di Alessandro Volta
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- cobblestone architecture
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- Como Cathedral
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- circa 1396
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- Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta
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- WWI War Memorial
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- dedicated to Alessandro Volta (inventor of the electric battery)
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- fresh-catch branzino
Como Cathedral
