Grand Hotel Como

... as autumn was in full swing.  The mountainsides were sponge-painted in festive autumn colors of orange, red and yellow.  Purple branches projected from the mountain as creamy green and valencia orange leaves presented themselves vibrantly in the sun.  Water rushed over rocks falling to the river at their feet.  The whole scene was spectacular like something out of a fairytale.  As we passed through the town of Bellegarde, I looked out the window to see a ...

... gigantesques.

nous avons dinner dans un resto sur la rue tres touristique qui relis le duomo au chateau... un petit diner leger avec lequel emilie a pris une coupe de vin blanc qui coutait le prix total de nos 3 dernieres bouteilles de vin!!


je vais tenter d'ajouter des photos a mon blog le plus tot possible.

... from the point there though which was cool.
Ferry back from Belaggio to Como was a lot quicker (and more expensive) and had some great views of the various places around the lake.

Back in Milan that night discovered the happy hour buffets that I'd read about - 6 Euro for a drink and all you can eat.

Buffet is nothing special, but ...

... a cool little wine bar/tobacco shop/lottery agent to have an aperitif and got to hear the waitress singing along to the radio in broken English with lots of made up words.
Had an AMAZING seafood paella at Osteria del Lazzaretto as well as the biggest piece of bruschetta I've had in my life! They also had half a litre of house wine for 4 Euro! Score!

... it was potentially the most beautiful place ive ever been to. como is the largest town on a huge lake. I got an all day ferry ticket from Como and went exploring. it was great beause you could hop on and off as often as you liked and the ferries were pretty regular. they did stop in the middle of the day for the bloody siesta though!

It is postard-like scenery the whole way - huge tree covered mountains stretch down to the lake, which looks surprisingly clean ...

... of emotion I guess you could say, quite the opposite in Italy. We walked through this old graveyard on top of Brunate (little village on top of the hill next to como) where they had the last names on huge marble rooms, where it looked like generations of that family have been laid to rest. It's the strong family and community bond that you can almost feel in the air, makes you think about how cold a lot of places seem to me. The old mediteranian styled houses with a ...

... get it and you have to book in advance (Just call them)

Strong reco ... it you are in Milan plan to watch a football match. Otherwise headout to a lake nearby in Alps and stay there for the night.

If none of this is possible, than please go to Milan before you head anywhere else in italy.It will make the trip better and more worthwhile.

Hey... note all of above is subject to you not going to Milan for shopping...

... Brian and I realized that almost every town was better than the last just because of its unique position on the lake. Eventually we arrived in Bellagio and could not believe how close the buildings were to the water. It seemed almost like every home and shop was going to fall into the water at any moment. We ascended the stairs to the top streets, past the town's church and down a road to the three way point of the town. From this point ...

... genuine. Genuine what I had to think. Apparently it was the balcony that inspired Billy boy to write his scene. OK. I'll accept that. But, no doubt in the 16th century it could have been one of many but this one had survived. Around the walls of the courtyard lovers had written graffiti messages about their love for one another or pinned messages on paper onto the timbers. It was one of the few places where the authorities had permitted this expression of love to be ...