Bus to Como

Our swarthy southern Italian driver. Not a word spoken during the hour long trip. Just subtle gestures with head and hand. He was a man of many talents as he operated his bus along the narrow, twisty roads, honking at every turn, breaking, stopping and sometimes even backing up so the opposing traffic could squeeze through and then so could we. Then his cel phone rang! After he managed to extricate it from the pack around his waist ...Prego! The only word we'd heard so far.....a short conversation ensued using his right hand, he didn't miss a beat, or a honk and continued steering all with his left hand.

 

 

Sitting in the front seat we could see everything and it was also easy to get a couple of pictures of him without distracting him, Bahahaaa ....talk about distracted drivers!! The driving is crazy over here but nobody gets upset. They're animated and excitable but in a relaxed manner. An oxymoron of behaviour?

As with Lugano it was a bit overwhelming to arrive in a city by bus for only an afternoon. You start out not really knowing where to go. As we are interested in the old buildings and churches we looked for the tallest spire or dome and walked towards it. Sure enough we find ourselves in the main plaza, the heart of the city with its famous Cathedral Duomo. It's construction started in 1396 but wasn't completed until 1770 when the famous 70 meter high cupola was set in place. Coming to Como was a spur of the moment side trip away from the group so other than figuring out how to get here we didn't do much investigating as to what we should look for. We wandered the spacious and busy Plaza Duomo finally settling in a cafe facing the beautiful front facade of the church.

 

 

For a few hours we enjoy a small look at the old city of Como while we do what we are becoming quite good at; relaxing in a cafe with cappuccinos and pastries enjoying the beauty of the scenery in front of us. We sketch and people watch until it is time to find our way to a bus station and head back to Bellagio. The return trip wasn't quite as much fun as we could barely get a seat, let alone the front one. The bus is filled with young kids that attend school in Como but live in the many small communities along the lake.

 

We found a photo booth at the bus station.... but whether or not they are different than we remember them as kids we couldn't figure out how to make it work. €10 later this is the best we could get. Didn't request the 'Valentine' background either....but we have a memory photo and did have a few good laughs.

We arrive back in Bellagio in time to freshen up and meet our group in the hotel's lakeside dining room for our 'last supper'. Everyone but us leaves in the early morning. We decided a long time ago that we wanted a relaxed trip home so we don't leave til Saturday. Scheduled transportation strikes for Thursday have left some people on edge wondering if their flights will go smoothly. Despite everything we have a fun dinner and say our goodbyes. We have one more day on our own tomorrow.

 

 

 

 

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Pescallo di Bellagio

We set out on our own after breakfast. The group is going to Villa Melzi to sketch but we have been that way and have another destination in mind. We will walk over to the other side of the arm of Lake Como heading to the village of Pescallo di Bellagio. We wind our way along some of the streets leading up and away from the lakeside. This is the wine cellar where we spent our first evening as a group.

Our street Via Salita Sorbelloni...our hotel is at the bottom.

My eye for urban sketching is always attracted to the colourful walls, doors, gates and lamps.

 

My happy Keen feet walking the cobblestones ...this was a 'happy accident' photo but says a lot about the roads less travelled and the pleasure we experienced following them. We called these days 'our Gecko days' because on all our solo village walks there were always geckos skittering along the warmth of the stone walls and paths.

 

I took a video here as we sat on a stone bench looking down to the water. The birds were singing so loudly that I had to record their song and the only way I knew how to do it was to video it. I can listen to the video and feel like I am right back there on that bench in the sunshine.

Following the pathways into the village and all it's colours both on the buildings and growing out of the stone walls.

A scene down a narrow walkway that led to a few fishing boats tied up on the rocky shore.

 

We stop at a spa hotel right in the middle of this village on the lake. We go in for a cappuccino in the dappled sunlight below the pergola that gives the hotel it's name.

 

It is such a pleasant spot that we decide to stay for a late lunch. This picture below tells the story of our meal. We are eating Italian style, slowly with wine and lots of time.

Even had dessert.

After our lunch as we start to wind our way back up from the water along another cobblestone walkway we come across a beautiful doorway with tiles overhead. We sit on some steps and sketch it. It is always a surprise when we draw the same thing to see how different our interpretation of the scene turns out. More geckos in the sunshine.

 

 

 

Back to the hotel before dinner. A quick refresh for a bit and decide it's time to go shopping. Scarves, more leather bracelets from our favourite store and then on to the boot shop. I love the soft top boots. I have been coveting them since first seeing them. I'm feeling quite daring getting them in blue and hope I will still like them when I get home.

They wrap everything in such unique ways.

Across from the boot shop is what is becoming our regular dinner place so we just plunk ourselves down and have dinner before heading for home after another delightful day exploring the back roads of Bellagio.

 

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Il Caminetto Cookery School

We are met at the ferry dock in Varenno by Chef Moreno and with another taxi driven by Monica to take us all up into the hills above town to the village of Gittana where the Ristorante Il Caminetto and Cookery School is located. Chef Moreno and his wife Rosella operate the restaurant in a building that has been in his family for over a thousand years. He was born in this kitchen by the fire place. Il Caminetto means 'my sweet fireplace'.

We are welcomed with beautifully set tables, cappuccinos and what I thought was cheesecake, but was told it is a Torta Paesana which is a peasant cake made from his mothers recipe of whatever is in the kitchen with bread as a base. A little bit sweet but lovely with coffee.

Everything is set for an eating extravaganza. Bottled water, white and red wine....anything you want. Chef Moreno starts with a description of the meal he will be preparing...fresh chicken...Pollo in Umido alla Contadina, translated, stewed chicken, farmer style. Everything is done with exquisite style and cleanliness. Every ingredient is freshly grown, picked, chopped, grated and mashed.

Memorable quotes: show the garlic whose boss; keep always your kitchen clean and organized; only use aromatic herbs; approach love and cooking with reckless abandon (the Dalai Lama) ....

Chicken heading for the oven.

 

Next we start with the filling for the hand made tortellini. Garlic, zucchini, fresh herbs, ricotta cheese.

It just gets better watching him as he mixes his flour and eggs for the tortellini wraps. The smells in the kitchen are out of this world. I wish I could record the aromas.

 

As we watch, smell, listen, and drink wine we are also sketching our experiences.

 

We all took turns folding tortellini until all the pieces were ready for the pot. Knowing we were going to eat all this food we were starting to get a little bit hungry.

 

The finished product, as in Italy, pasta is the premier course...

Next came the meat dish....stewed chicken with chard risotto and tomatoes. To die for flavours!!

We are slowing down, the food and wine is making us a little too comfortable ...the sketching seems to have stopped also. Next comes dessert in the form of limoncello .....much of that and we wouldn't make it onto the ferry.

 

As we leave the cookery school after seven hours of indulgence the sun is still shining and we all take a breath of fresh air smelling the many herbs growing in front of the restaurant door.

We take away a souvenir apron to wear at home, a reminder of our wonderful experience with a charming chef in his unique kitchen. It has been one of the most entertaining days, and the best meal of our tour so far. It will be hard to top the quality of the food we have consumed today. It was a joy.

 

Arrivaderci Chef Moreno.

 

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Lugano, Switzerland

It's an overcast morning as we cross the lake to Menaggio where we will catch the bus to Lugano. We come over early so everyone could spend an hour looking around the plaza and shops. Lynn and I had been here last week so we each wandered off on our own for a little quiet time before getting on the bus.

Your neighbourhood corner store called a Tabaccheria.....literal translation means a "tobacconist shop" but it is a general merchandise store with a meat and cheese counter, canned and packaged goods, a huge selection of wine, even an old fashioned candy counter.

A pizza delivery car? maybe, it certainly looks like one.

We meet back at the plaza and walk to the main bus stop to ensure we will all get on one bus. Immediately we climb away from the lake with hairpin curves which make the bus have to stop and back up to let the downhill bus get around the corner. More twists and turns and tunnel after tunnel as we cross over to Lake Lugano.

We are waved through the "Dogano" the border, at the end of a long tunnel. We are in Switzerland and even the colours have changed. No more warm Italian colours.

Even with today's technology with cel phones there are still a lot of phone boothes. Saw lots of them but nobody was ever using them. They still looked pristine, no graffiti or signs of destruction at all. This was a city bus that looked more like a fast train.

We found another book shop that had art supplies and a beautiful supply of hand made paper. We didn't find any supplies we needed but I bought a few sheets of paper in what I call my Italian colours.

Another plaza, another cappuccino and some more sketching. "Manor " was a huge department store housed in part in an old building and next door a large modern section. It reminded me of when I was a child and I would go "downtown" Vancouver with my mother on Saturdays. We would go to Woodwards and the food departments were downstairs. We would sit at the counter and have toasted shrimp sandwiches. Very much the same set up in this store.

It was amazing how a one hour bus trip could quickly bring about so many changes. When buses and trains were late in Italy, we were told "this is Italy" with the hand gestures to go with the statement. Now we are in Switzerland and everything runs with the precision of a "Swiss watch".

 

 

We missed catching up with our group who sat and sketched the wrought iron gate looking over the lake. I drew my version from the Facebook picture that was posted. Not truly in the "Jane's World" style but done nevertheless.

We are on the 4:00 bus back to Bellagio. It has been a long day, probably our least exciting experience to date. I am still feeling punky with my cold but am happy to have found my Ricola's. They are my best cough drop when at home. It is funny to buy them in Switzerland and get them in a hinged tin that I have been looking for to make a small palette for my gouache paints.

We do not feel like making the effort to go out for dinner. Our hotel has a little 'hot dog' window on the plaza side so we went down and got cheeseburgers, Italian style, they even had mayo on them, some potato chips and went up to our room. I am a happy camper. In my pyjamas with a glass of wine and an easy, peasy dinner. As we sat on our beds working on our journals another huge thunder and lightning storm lit up the night sky for hours. It was the music I went to sleep with.

 

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