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| Not our hotel! |
From Tuscany we journeyed North, stopping first in Brescia to see stage 17 of the Giro d'Italia. It was a last minute decision to head off a day earlier than planned to see a stage ridden in the mountains and we were a bit excited being able to make a quick change to our otherwise quite structured itinerary. According to the race guide Stage 17 was a Category 4 climb. What we failed to realize was that this was the easiest grading, not the hardest and was going to be merely a bump in the road for these seasoned riders! None-the-less we were excited and with our Aussie kit and Hawthorn Footy club jumper we hit the road at 7.30am to beat the expected road closures. We were set up, post coffee stop by 10am and for the next five hours of waiting we enjoyed the sunshine and a book, while watching the many recreational cyclist roll by. Within six minutes the peloton had been and gone, but it was worth it for a final glimpse of the 99th Giro d'italia!
From our posi on the hill we had a long slow journey down, headed for Lake Como via Bergamo. We had heard Bergamo was lovely but it was out of this world. Perched upon the hill the old town was stunning and the views beyond comprehension. We were so lucky to have seen it, if only for a short time and we enjoyed just wandering for the last part of the day. We drove right in to the old town and found a parking space not far from the funicular. This proved to be another slight parking error as some months later a sum of Euros was deducted from my credit card by the hire car company. Eventually the explanation arrived in the post, a parking ticket for parking within 'a local zone'. Oops!!
The
funicular was super steep and great fun, only around 3 Euros return and wheelchair accessible! We rode it down to the town, past the vine covered homesteads and opulent back yards. Through the cobbled old town we wandered seeing Piazza Vecchia and the in tact old Venetian walls. Being late in the day we skipped going up the
Torre del Campone in the Piazza, but evidently there is accessibility to the roof top. The main street of Bergamo was old and gorgeous and I (more so than Dickey!) loved taking my time exploring the little boutiques. Of all of Italy, Bergamo took the prize for the most challenging cobbles and despite loving our couple of hours there it was super hard work for Dickey to navigate.
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| Piazza Vecchie & the Torre del Campone |
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| Bergamo beauty |
From Bergamo we hit the road to Como at 8pm, driving straight in to the most stunning, but equally challenging sunset. After our typical navigational hiccups we found our hotel the B & B Como and checked in just on 10pm. We had single beds but it was accessible, once we were able to get a shower chair delivered. Apparently in Como the mobility restricted only bath from the naval down, as the shower rose height was hilarious and it quickly became apparent that I was best off sitting on the floor to shower. I'm pretty sure Dickey managed only very clean legs those few days!
Lake Como is just as stunning as it looks in the movies and we were so excited to be there ! We wondered the paths around the foreshore, taking in the sheer grandeur of the lake houses and the surrounding mountains. On day one we wandered the West Bank almost up to Tavernola, seeing Villa Olmo, and the private boat parking underneath the Villas. The architecture and gardens along the banks of the lake are stunning. The original township of Como was behind its city walls and
they are still very grand. Amongst the original buildings there was also the odd hilariously random communist building, it seemed that every place we visited there was at least one to find. The Duomo was huge and the 6th Century San Fedele Church was accessible. Just outside the main city gates we found a traditional Italian milliner and had the most awesome time with the assistance of two lovely ladies who spoke limited English. Dickey had some birthday money that his grandmother had left him and wanted a traditional peaked beret cap. With so many to chose from he ended up with 2 - a summer and a winter version!
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| A Como sunset in the new hat! |
Not surprisingly its the outdoors that are most popular in Como and there were fantastic green areas around the lake, a large kids park right on the banks of the lake complete with water jet features and the main soccer stadium sits right on the water front also. It is obvious that life in Como is designed around the water and boats as the main mode of transport! The East bank was also lovely and from here we found another funicular which took us from Como up to Bruate. It was a huge highlight and we managed to time our trip right on sunset. Fully accessible and only 5.50 euro each it was awesome and set on a 51% gradient!! Up at Brunate we were 715 mt above sea level and despite the haze could still make out Monte Bisbine at 1325m and the Swiss Alps to the West of the lake. The haze blocked out a lot of the sunset but it was still a fantastic trip and we saw a few of the even more grand homes located up on the hill. Unfortunately there was little else we could get to in Brunate due to stairs, but it was worth the trip just to experience 51% gradient.
The ferries are a great system in the Lakes and we had confirmed that every 2nd or 3rd ferry through the day offered accessibility so on our final day, Saturday 28th May we decided to head over to see the famed Bellagio. We hadn't seen Daniel Craig or George Clooney in Como, so perhaps they were hiding in Bellagio?!! We chose the two hour, zig zag trip across and the 1 hour express back. It was magical and actually difficult to find enough adjectives to describe the old villas, the peaks of the mountains and the dark, beautiful lake. The ferry crossed its way back and forwards and we adored taking it all in. We spotted a gorgeous picnic spot for that evening in
Cernobbio and promised each other we would return one day and stay in the
Grand Hotel in Tremezzo. It looked breath taking!
Bellagio itself was pretty and had a lovely waterfront stretch, but sadly due to accessibility we really couldn't experience much. All the towns shops were up incredible narrow steep stairs and although I did a quick up and back I felt for Dickey have to stay at the bottom and miss it. While we were glad to have seem Bellagio we agreed that the ferry ride over had been the highlight for us! In saying that, there is obviously a lot more that can be enjoyed there given it is described at the 'Pearl of Lake Como'.
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| The Grand Hotel, Tremezzo! |
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| Bellagio's Waterfront |
We were determined to spend our last night having a picnic by the banks for the lake and thankfully managed to talk our way on to the 5pm ferry, rather than wait for the next accessible one at 8.30pm. For some odd reason they weren't allowing you to pre-book a return ticket and the tourists were practically stampeding for the 5pm ferry and the line was forming just after 4pm. Maybe others agreed with us and didn't see Bellagio as the Pearl of the Lake?!! Back in Como we stocked up on picnic provisions and the shops best bottle of Prosecco (7 euros!!) and headed out to find Cernobbio and the lake side spot who had picked out from the ferry. Attempting to navigate our way I headed down a one way street and when Dickey shrieked, I hit the breaks causing the prosecco to roll through the car. I was only trying to drive like a local! Around 7.30pm we had a possy on a park bench with the most spectacular view of the lake and I managed to score a bag of ice from a little bar nearby without using English! Pre-chilled wine is hard to find in Como! The slamming of the car breaks combined with the non chilled bottle caused a great combination and when Dickey went to open the bottle it literally exploded as soon as the wire was loosened, shooting the cork into the lake after brushing past the side of his face. Prosecco was bubbling, his lap was soaking wet with bubbles, he was checking he still had his eye in tact and all I could do was sit back and giggle and watch the prosecco cork bob along the surface of Lake Como! Sharing our single glass and chatting over our chicken rolls and fresh olives at around 8.55pm life changed forever. Most definitely for the better! Wheeling around to be right beside me Dickey proceeded to give a little speech thanking me for the trip, the last few years together, the laughter and the fun we continued to share. I am sure for the first part I had a look of confusion on my face and I was genuinely oblivious to where he was going with it and why he was being so serious. Slowly the penny started to drop and I watched him pull a little green velvet box from his pocket as he told me "I think i'd be crazy if I didn't ask you to be my wife, so hun will you marry me?". Trembling, laughing and spilling more prosecco over his lap I asked "can you say that again?", he did. I asked my question again, he asked his again. Then he prompted me, "I think you're supposed to say yes now!". "Yes, yes, yes" I laughed and as we grinned ear to ear at each other, totally in our own moment. It was truly the most epic experience and burst of feelings and love! What a place and what a guy. He had totally surprised me with the biggest gift ever!
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| Our Lake Como view |
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| The moment!! |
As the planning stories started to spill out it became apparent just how long he had planned this out and the thought he had put in. It hadn't happened where or how he had imagined initially, but it was perfect and just as it should have been - the two of us in a fit of laughter! After a couple of poorly attempted selfies in the dark we headed back to the car just as the fireworks started to go off in the nearby park. Months on now and Dickey is still claiming they were all part of his plan! Back to our hotel for the last night in Lake Como we were completely in our own bubble of happiness and bliss and so grateful that we could keep our secret to ourselves for a few days! Before eventually falling into our single beds for a few hours sleep we had to pack up, ready for a 4am alarm to get us us for our biggest travel day yet -> Lake Como - Verona - Venice - Dubrovnik!!
Lake Como was a total charm and holds an incredibly special place in our hearts, obviously. Another place on our list of must return to!
Lake Como 25/5 - 29/5
From our posi on the hill we had a long slow journey down, headed for Lake Como via Bergamo. We had heard Bergamo was lovely but it was out of this world. Perched upon the hill the old town was stunning and the views beyond comprehension. We were so lucky to have seen it, if only for a short time and we enjoyed just wandering for the last part of the day. We drove right in to the old town and found a parking space not far from the funicular. This proved to be another slight parking error as some months later a sum of Euros was deducted from my credit card by the hire car company. Eventually the explanation arrived in the post, a parking ticket for parking within 'a local zone'. Oops!!
From Bergamo we hit the road to Como at 8pm, driving straight in to the most stunning, but equally challenging sunset. After our typical navigational hiccups we found our hotel the B & B Como and checked in just on 10pm. We had single beds but it was accessible, once we were able to get a shower chair delivered. Apparently in Como the mobility restricted only bath from the naval down, as the shower rose height was hilarious and it quickly became apparent that I was best off sitting on the floor to shower. I'm pretty sure Dickey managed only very clean legs those few days!
We were determined to spend our last night having a picnic by the banks for the lake and thankfully managed to talk our way on to the 5pm ferry, rather than wait for the next accessible one at 8.30pm. For some odd reason they weren't allowing you to pre-book a return ticket and the tourists were practically stampeding for the 5pm ferry and the line was forming just after 4pm. Maybe others agreed with us and didn't see Bellagio as the Pearl of the Lake?!! Back in Como we stocked up on picnic provisions and the shops best bottle of Prosecco (7 euros!!) and headed out to find Cernobbio and the lake side spot who had picked out from the ferry. Attempting to navigate our way I headed down a one way street and when Dickey shrieked, I hit the breaks causing the prosecco to roll through the car. I was only trying to drive like a local! Around 7.30pm we had a possy on a park bench with the most spectacular view of the lake and I managed to score a bag of ice from a little bar nearby without using English! Pre-chilled wine is hard to find in Como! The slamming of the car breaks combined with the non chilled bottle caused a great combination and when Dickey went to open the bottle it literally exploded as soon as the wire was loosened, shooting the cork into the lake after brushing past the side of his face. Prosecco was bubbling, his lap was soaking wet with bubbles, he was checking he still had his eye in tact and all I could do was sit back and giggle and watch the prosecco cork bob along the surface of Lake Como! Sharing our single glass and chatting over our chicken rolls and fresh olives at around 8.55pm life changed forever. Most definitely for the better! Wheeling around to be right beside me Dickey proceeded to give a little speech thanking me for the trip, the last few years together, the laughter and the fun we continued to share. I am sure for the first part I had a look of confusion on my face and I was genuinely oblivious to where he was going with it and why he was being so serious. Slowly the penny started to drop and I watched him pull a little green velvet box from his pocket as he told me "I think i'd be crazy if I didn't ask you to be my wife, so hun will you marry me?". Trembling, laughing and spilling more prosecco over his lap I asked "can you say that again?", he did. I asked my question again, he asked his again. Then he prompted me, "I think you're supposed to say yes now!". "Yes, yes, yes" I laughed and as we grinned ear to ear at each other, totally in our own moment. It was truly the most epic experience and burst of feelings and love! What a place and what a guy. He had totally surprised me with the biggest gift ever!
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