Menaggio - 30 May 2008
Well I thought I'd add a few more words because on our last full day in Italy we ended up going to Menaggio (across the lake, 5 mins) and it was a really beautiful little town and well worth a visit. It had a slightly bigger town centre and a much longer promenade area right by the lake. The funny thing is (and I have to mention this for those who know my sister and her notorious 'blonde moments') that once we got there, Nathalie then had a brain storm when she realised that Menaggio was actually THE place where she'd stayed 5 years ago, NOT Bellagio. No wonder she couldn't remember where to find her previous hotel --- she was on the wrong side of the shore! We all agreed, however, that Bellagio being equally beautiful it made no difference (except that there may be a few more tourist attractions on Menaggio's shore saving on a few ferry trips - average being 30 euros for 4 people). Also, our hotel's panorama was so breathtaking and more informal than the Grand Hotel (where she'd previously stayed) that we felt her mistake had been a blessing in disguise.
We did pop into The Grand Hotel though, just to double check where she'd stayed before and they had a lovely pool overlooking the lake, with the pretty harbour in the foreground and I would have happily spent time in it but a lot of people in the Guest Books were complaining of not being able to sleep before 4am due to noise of the boats in the morning. Plus it was a lot more expensive for more people... making it prohibitive for our low budget.
It was a very sunny morning when we set off (ferries run every 30 minutes) but it soon became stormy. We'd been strolling around for an hour when we had to make a dash for our car and stay put for 30 minutes... But the light just before the storm was so fluid, it was perfect from a photographic point of view.
I really wanted to visit the Villa Melius, as its grounds looked very beautiful but we were told at the Grand Hotel reception that this would have been booked in advance and not feasible today. Pity.
We went back to our hotel for 5pm, I had a bath, as per usual, my father read his papers on the terrace... we then had our last meal at our hotel as they had a buffet that night (cold food only but a bargain at 15 euros a head -- bargain considering how much the Macles can eat !!! I put on 3kgs in a week... 3 kgs, shock and horror ! However, I am relieved to say that I managed to lose them again after 5 days back in England, phew). They were even able to put the heating on above our heads to keep us warmer after the sun had gone down. The panaromic view changed and looked like a Christmas tree... lots of little lights around the mountains, as the roads zig zags it did pretty much looked like an ornament. I also got the chance to take some shots of the shores lit up at night, with my tripod and was very pleased with some of the effects - beautiful blue-ish sky (we never got to see a sunset).
Back to Besancon.... 31 May 2008.
We had our last breakfast back on the terrace.... the weather was superb and I remember thinking how much I was going to miss the view. I'd make a point to look up and stare at it in between each bite I took. It was just like looking a live painting, very romantic indeed, and the odd low cloud made it look so much atmospheric.
I'd been nicknamed 'GPS' on the way as my job was to do the map reading and so, to be true to my title, I'd worked out a short-cut to go back home. The Michelin instructions we'd printed did not mention that if we crossed the lake instead of going around it, we could save one hour, but we now knew better due to our practice run the day before. We even had the ferry timetable so timed everything quite nicely to get to the other shore for 11:20am and it was plain sailing from then on... but for the odd bout of rain that made it extra difficult for Nathalie to drive. But everything was sign posted really well all the way, especially in Switzerland, so driving back wasn't stressful at all. And Northern Italy is completely different from the South, nobody driving like lunactics or blowing their horns. Plus we were 'off season' so the roads were much quieter too.
In fact, it was nice to try a different route driving back (at least the first 45 mins) as we got to see two more lakes we had not seen before, one of them (whose name I've forgotten but it's located just before Lake Lugano) was smaller but really pretty with a whole patch of waterlillies on one side. I wished we'd known that the day before as I would have enjoyed a stroll around it. I longed to get off the car to take photos but it was a bit too short notice and once we'd past the parking area it would have been too difficult to turn round (the roads zig zag too much and you don't a lot of visibility to do a turn around).
Anyway... we got home 6 hours later, including our 1H break at our favorite station (the one just before Luzern, whose name I've forgotten again, it sounded German). I'd recommend that one to anyone who does that journey, it was the best by far... we'd stopped at the one earlier (on the actual lake, i.e. after Luzern) in case it was better, but it was far too basic so we decided we were better off driving an extra 25 mins to reach the best one.
I haven't really sent many post cards because they were all from the 60's !!! It was weird... but Bellagio hasn't changed that much since. Just as quaint as ever... Believe it or not, I ended up taking 850 photos in just 6 days !!! Even in Borneo I 'only' took 700 !!! That says a LOT, hey? Trying to sort them out and select the best 10 to share will be mission impossible...
In memory of Nathalie Naulin, who lost her 5 year battle against her brain tumour whilst I was on this trip. Her gentle spirit will live on. I felt I was appreciating the beauty of our world twice over when I was there... once for me and once for her (who loved travelling as much as I do but never got the chance to finish her world tour once her treatment had started). I trust she is now enjoying Heaven's beauty for me too. RIP.
-- "Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away" (George Carlin)
Well I thought I'd add a few more words because on our last full day in Italy we ended up going to Menaggio (across the lake, 5 mins) and it was a really beautiful little town and well worth a visit. It had a slightly bigger town centre and a much longer promenade area right by the lake. The funny thing is (and I have to mention this for those who know my sister and her notorious 'blonde moments') that once we got there, Nathalie then had a brain storm when she realised that Menaggio was actually THE place where she'd stayed 5 years ago, NOT Bellagio. No wonder she couldn't remember where to find her previous hotel --- she was on the wrong side of the shore! We all agreed, however, that Bellagio being equally beautiful it made no difference (except that there may be a few more tourist attractions on Menaggio's shore saving on a few ferry trips - average being 30 euros for 4 people). Also, our hotel's panorama was so breathtaking and more informal than the Grand Hotel (where she'd previously stayed) that we felt her mistake had been a blessing in disguise.
We did pop into The Grand Hotel though, just to double check where she'd stayed before and they had a lovely pool overlooking the lake, with the pretty harbour in the foreground and I would have happily spent time in it but a lot of people in the Guest Books were complaining of not being able to sleep before 4am due to noise of the boats in the morning. Plus it was a lot more expensive for more people... making it prohibitive for our low budget.
It was a very sunny morning when we set off (ferries run every 30 minutes) but it soon became stormy. We'd been strolling around for an hour when we had to make a dash for our car and stay put for 30 minutes... But the light just before the storm was so fluid, it was perfect from a photographic point of view.
I really wanted to visit the Villa Melius, as its grounds looked very beautiful but we were told at the Grand Hotel reception that this would have been booked in advance and not feasible today. Pity.
We went back to our hotel for 5pm, I had a bath, as per usual, my father read his papers on the terrace... we then had our last meal at our hotel as they had a buffet that night (cold food only but a bargain at 15 euros a head -- bargain considering how much the Macles can eat !!! I put on 3kgs in a week... 3 kgs, shock and horror ! However, I am relieved to say that I managed to lose them again after 5 days back in England, phew). They were even able to put the heating on above our heads to keep us warmer after the sun had gone down. The panaromic view changed and looked like a Christmas tree... lots of little lights around the mountains, as the roads zig zags it did pretty much looked like an ornament. I also got the chance to take some shots of the shores lit up at night, with my tripod and was very pleased with some of the effects - beautiful blue-ish sky (we never got to see a sunset).
Back to Besancon.... 31 May 2008.
We had our last breakfast back on the terrace.... the weather was superb and I remember thinking how much I was going to miss the view. I'd make a point to look up and stare at it in between each bite I took. It was just like looking a live painting, very romantic indeed, and the odd low cloud made it look so much atmospheric.
I'd been nicknamed 'GPS' on the way as my job was to do the map reading and so, to be true to my title, I'd worked out a short-cut to go back home. The Michelin instructions we'd printed did not mention that if we crossed the lake instead of going around it, we could save one hour, but we now knew better due to our practice run the day before. We even had the ferry timetable so timed everything quite nicely to get to the other shore for 11:20am and it was plain sailing from then on... but for the odd bout of rain that made it extra difficult for Nathalie to drive. But everything was sign posted really well all the way, especially in Switzerland, so driving back wasn't stressful at all. And Northern Italy is completely different from the South, nobody driving like lunactics or blowing their horns. Plus we were 'off season' so the roads were much quieter too.
In fact, it was nice to try a different route driving back (at least the first 45 mins) as we got to see two more lakes we had not seen before, one of them (whose name I've forgotten but it's located just before Lake Lugano) was smaller but really pretty with a whole patch of waterlillies on one side. I wished we'd known that the day before as I would have enjoyed a stroll around it. I longed to get off the car to take photos but it was a bit too short notice and once we'd past the parking area it would have been too difficult to turn round (the roads zig zag too much and you don't a lot of visibility to do a turn around).
Anyway... we got home 6 hours later, including our 1H break at our favorite station (the one just before Luzern, whose name I've forgotten again, it sounded German). I'd recommend that one to anyone who does that journey, it was the best by far... we'd stopped at the one earlier (on the actual lake, i.e. after Luzern) in case it was better, but it was far too basic so we decided we were better off driving an extra 25 mins to reach the best one.
I haven't really sent many post cards because they were all from the 60's !!! It was weird... but Bellagio hasn't changed that much since. Just as quaint as ever... Believe it or not, I ended up taking 850 photos in just 6 days !!! Even in Borneo I 'only' took 700 !!! That says a LOT, hey? Trying to sort them out and select the best 10 to share will be mission impossible...
In memory of Nathalie Naulin, who lost her 5 year battle against her brain tumour whilst I was on this trip. Her gentle spirit will live on. I felt I was appreciating the beauty of our world twice over when I was there... once for me and once for her (who loved travelling as much as I do but never got the chance to finish her world tour once her treatment had started). I trust she is now enjoying Heaven's beauty for me too. RIP.
-- "Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away" (George Carlin)
posted by Sylvie at 9:15 AM
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