A day on Lake Como

Varenna, where we're staying, is Rick Steves' recommendation for a home base on Lake Como.  It's easy to get to by train, and the frequent ferries allow many sightseeing options from there.  If you stay in Bellagio, for instance, you need to take the train to Varenna, walk several blocks down the hill to the ferry dock, wait for the next boat, and wrestle your luggage onto the ferry.  Well, maybe I'm exaggerating the difficulty a bit, but it wouldn't be fun on a windy, rainy day.  I've talked to other friends who visited this area by car and drove around, and took the car ferry, to see the towns on the lake.  It's a lot of driving, and congested in the high season, and we were glad not to have a car to worry about.

We had a nice breakfast at the hotel.  Honestly, I'm beyond happy to be getting a cappuccino made to order at the hotels.  The rest is just icing on the cake.  And in Italy, breakfast is mostly fresh bread and pastries, and sometimes even cake.  If they have cereal and yogurt, it's just to appease the visitors.  Eggs are mostly non-existent.  This hotel had sliced cheeses and meat, and fresh fruit in addition to the pastries, cereals and yogurt.  It takes a lot of fuel to walk around all day.  I think our travel companions who don't drink coffee are just crazy.  They're missing the best coffee in the world!

The day was sunny, and fairly windy, but we decided to take the ferry to see Bellagio, and maybe another town or two, during our one full day in the area.

We saw this sign on the waterfront, advertising tours cruising by George's house and a few other celebrity homes on Lake Como.

FYI - Here's where George lives, and there's a tour that will take you by his place.

 The scenery was spectacular, and the boat ride was smooth, even when the water looked pretty choppy.  Bellagio was a cute town, full of nice shops, and steep stairs going up the hill into town.

Looking across the lake from the ferry

Waterfront park in Bellagio

Looking down a stairway in Bellagio

We had lunch at a nice place, the Ristorante Antico Pozzo, and ate inside since it was chilly out.  We decided to get an antipasto of sliced meats and cheeses, and our waiter convinced us we'd need two for our group.  We also ordered pizzas to share, and it was far too much food altogether.  It seems like most menus we've seen have only single-serving pizzas, about 10" in diameter, but with thin crust, so sometimes we split them between two of us, and sometimes we polish off a whole pizza ourselves.  It takes a lot of fuel to walk around all day.
   

From Bellagio, we took the ferry over to Menaggio.  There isn't really a cute, touristy area near the ferry dock there, so we walked around in search of one.  We finally found a bar with outdoor seating in the sun, and had a drink.  It takes a lot of fuel to walk around all day.

Ferry from Bellagio to Menaggio

Flowers and flags on the waterfront in Menaggio

We took the ferry back to Varenna, and our little hotel near the dock.  Marco and Il Padrino decided to hike up to the castle on the top of the hill.  Ricardo and I went to buy our train tickets for tomorrow, and walked up through the old part of Varenna.

 The square in the old part of Varenna.  Notice how the plane trees are pruned.

View of the new part of Varenna from the top of the hill

We gathered for a glass of wine in our room before having dinner in the hotel restaurant downstairs.  Dinner was OK, but service wasn't great, probably due to the crowd that night.  Marco's second course was served long after the rest of us were finished with our dinners.  When we asked about it, we were made to feel like we'd done something to cause the problem.  Hmmm.

For us, it was another "last supper" since Marco and Catherina would be leaving the group in the morning, headed for Venice for a few nights, and then home.