La Sacca Stresa

... good for what you pay!! And awesome for a backpacker!!
Went for drinks at Frank's Bar which Patrick who owns the hotel recommended. Turned out to be a pretty trendy cocktail joint
where you pay for your drink at 1 place then get it at another. 10 Euro for a beverage no matter what you had so naturally I ordered a long island ice tea!!!

... but it was nice to be able to relax and have a quiet walk around the villages. I needed to take a lot of ferries as this is the quickest way to get between each town as they are all placed at different points around the lake. A very nice place that I would love to visit again in the Summertime.

Next stop is Venice, Italy!

... to go out in the cold again, so then we spent time on YouTube until they got home and made us dinner. Ah, the Italian life. Meghan and I crawled into our beds but didn't sleep for a long time, just talking. We both thoroughly enjoyed the freedom of speaking normally, without adjusting our language to make ourselves understood. She had been accepted that day into an English teaching program in China, and wasn't sure if she wanted to take it or not, so we talked ...

... down in a square. The tour guide told the story of this event which was in fact played out around Como with the bodies being hung upside down in the nearby city of Milan.

As with everything these days I was able to retrieve the picture from the internet and have included it to reinforce the adage that violence begets violence - and on a smaller scale even the young love in Romeo and Juliet is destroyed by family conflict ...

... featuring some very pretty gardens and fountains. We enjoyed some gelato as we walked along the lakeside gardens. After an hour break here, we took the short drive to Como. Como is also another beautiful lakeside town. We shared dinner and enjoyed a nice conversation with Stan and Johanna from Colorado. We are now in Italy and we are looking forward to the next seven days in this country.

Took the train from Milan to Lake Como - short 1.5 hour trip. The lake is beautiful and there was a speed boat race going on when we arrived. We took the funicular (tram) which has a charming little town at the top and a great view of the lake. We stayed on the south side of the lake (where George lives) and then took a boat north to Bellagio. Quaint town with steep streets filled with great shops. Can understand why George bought a house there!

... Every now and then there is a little town of brightly coloured houses, a beautiful church or an extravagant villa. I met this cute old ouple from australia on the first ferry and bumped in to them on my last ferry.

Highlights would have to have been Villa Olmo at Como which was a stunning cream coloured villa with ridiculously over the top interiors (gold everything!) and villa Carlotta at Tremezzio. the villa was a popular stopping place in the 18th century ...

... churches, castles, bridges, and historic buildings.

San Salvatore is one of the mountains on Lake Lugano. You can ride to the top in a funnicular, or hike up the steep path. We went the lazy route and saved our energy for walking around on top. From the funnicular station you can walk up a bit further to a small chapel sitting on the peak of the mountain. The chapel has a rooftop terrace with a stunning 360 degree panorama view.
Lugano, Swiss Alps, Switzerland travelingdiva

... flight in Chicago in the Air France lounge but I probably left it when I rushed through security trying to make my flight to Venice. I'll try to check lost and found in both places on my way back. I called T-mobile and suspended service. On 9-14, I took the ferry to Isola Bella, Isola Superiore di Pescatore and Bravena. There us a castle, now a museum on Bella that is breathtaking with beautiful ...

... at each other in disbelief.

That said, the chances of Michael Schumacher actually pulling it off were slim. He needed to win the race and Renault’s Fernando Alonso had to finish outside the points completely, and Schumacher was starting from tenth place on the grid. The Ferrari faithful were in full voice early on as he undertook a series of aggressive passing moves to lie in sixth place. But on lap 9 he was forced into the pits with a puncture, and all hope for ...