aria fresca

Who knew giant gulps of fresh air and lake breeze were so close? And that the Italian sky could be so big and blue over a simple lake? Ah, if only we had known that August does not affect the wonder of places like this, and that places like this are only an hour away from Milan. Oh August - things could have been so different between us....

Yesterday we took the train to Varenna on Lake Como (Lago Como). The train ride was so brief that there was hardly time to nap before we had reached our destination and were walking down to the lake.

Lago Como is a gorgeous swath of water and for those of you used to Lake Michigan this is something wholly different. In fact, I think Como would be promptly refused entry in the "Great Lakes" region for being simply too quaint and charming. Whereas Lake Michigan is a conquering sort of lake that leaves no trace of land on the other side, Como is a lake that is happy to feature picturesque views of everything on the other side... colorful towns, rising hills and blue skies all around.



Varenna is on the east side of the lake and is a small, quiet place with a castle sitting in the hills. After a coffee and pastries in the company of locals reading the newspaper and tugging at their stubborn dogs, we headed up into the hills to find the castle. It wasn't hard to find, it was just hard to reach. There was something about the low-lying humidity that turned us both into sweaty examples of the human body's attempt to cool itself - with little success. But after a steep hike we arrived at the castle.

It was a small castle but a fun one. There were hawks and an owl who lived on the grounds and in one of the castle's towers there was a collection of the heavy protective garb a knight might wear into battle. I can happily say that metal helmets and swords aren't just for teenage boys anymore. Both Stefano and I look fetching in metal - especially when the helmet won't stay on straight and covers up half your face.



The castle also boasts a spectacular view of the lake. If you're comfortable with climbing rickety stairs with no visible means of support than hop on up to the top of the tower and check out its panoramic view. It's all blue sky and blue waters, and basically gorgeous. And the stairs are even more fun on the way down.

There's a small part of town near the castle and we found a restaurant down one of the tiny streets. (Note to management: thanks for the signs.) We sat down to the tunes of Italian dance music and before we knew it the place was packed. Our food was delicious - Stefano had buckwheat deer ravioli with a butter sauce, I had porcini mushroom gnocchi and we shared a caprese salad to start. Sitting there with the cool breeze flying past and Italian hits pouring from the radio, we were very happy. Not just to be sitting down, but to be sitting there, in the company of small stone buildings and balconies with buckets of flowers pouring over their edges.



When we made it back down the path - which is harder than it sounds - we caught the ferry to Bellagio. The ferry was fun, took about 15 minutes, and took us to another world. Bellagio is the crazy cousin of Varenna. It's much bigger and packed with tourists, with the requisite places to window shop and shop for real; case in point being Stefano's new tie.

In Bellagio we found swans, the world's worst cupcake, and possibly a French rockstar. The swans just hang out along the shore. The cupcake was procured at a bakery and was just so sad and dry - I wanted to like it but even though I ate it (yes, of course I ate it) I have to say I've never had a more disappointing cupcake experience. And the French rockstar... Well he got off a water taxi walking and talking like a French rockstar and his five year old was wearing a Led Zeppelin t-shirt.

There was also an interesting vignette wherein three over-fashioned young males took turns posing provocatively along the shore, with each taking a turn as photographer. Shots included "young male in white pants perched on boat docking mechanism," "young male in pink polo with collar up lounging next to beached dinghy," and "young male with spiked hair mercilessly harangued until agreeing to pose awkwardly at end of small pier."



I should also mention that an older gentleman joined us on our bench at the water's edge - prime real estate as it was in the shade - and in a series of minute and virtually unnoticeable movements proceeded to take full ownership of the right portion of the bench. It was well done on his part, and he is obviously a master at the art of bench appropriating. We're mere amateurs and so moved further left to accommodate him. We'd lost before the battle even began.

We eventually gave up our place in the shade to duke it out with an international crew of tourists who wanted to get on the ferry asap and nothing was going to slow them down. We took it all in stride and enjoyed the view, the air, and the idea that we can come back.