Provo2Provence

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Not missing Turks & Caicos this time of year

Hurricane Earl bears down on Turks & Caicos

Monday, August 30, 2010

Last night in Italy

A Tita Bar in Lake Como? No lap dances allowed

Good food, new friends, and the obligatory grappa (quite a pour they give you in these parts)

Smooooth

Chico met his namesake - who looks decidedly not like a Chico

Our new friends, the owners - Whatshisname-o and his brother Guiseppe

I'm tired of driving

With Chico as my co-pilot, I fear nothing but get lost frequently

SOMEWHERE BETWEEN MILAN and MARSEILLE -- It's been a lot of driving and we already are hugely indebted to Hubert and Elisabeth for letting us use their car. So far we have gone from Brussels to the South of France, over to Barcelona and back, on to the north of Italy, and now we are getting ready to head to France. I lost track of the miles - never mind the toll charges (good thing they take credit cards at the toll booths).

Highway driving is fine, and even fun as 100 mph is about average on the long open stretches. But many of the roads along the coast of France and Italy are windy mountain stretches, through tunnels and blind curves so you have to stay on your toes and you lose a lot of time.

I kind of like the challenge of city driving and in the small towns, especially around Lake Como. But the BMW is a big beast and I wonder what would it would be like to have a Mini around town. Certainly would make parking a lot easier!

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Life is so much better under a white tent on the Lake

That's what I'm talkin' about

No parking on land, so take the ferry

On the ferry between Bellagio & Varenna


Waiting to drive off ferry at Varenna (Texas license plate- is that legal?)

BELLAGIO & VARENNA, Italy - A frustrating day trying to find parking in Bellagio, the most popular village on Lake Como, and even more popular on a gorgeous sunny day on the last weekend in August. After 20 minutes or so of driving around town unsuccessfully trying to find a spot, we decided to go to Plan B: drive on one of the ferries that criss-crosses the lake and head to another town. Luckily, one was due in a matter of minutes and headed to Varenna, another one of our favorite towns in northern Italy.

Parking wasn't much better in Varenna but we finally found a spot and wandered around town, re-living our past visit there and enjoying the scenery from this vantage point on the Lake.

Our friend Carla

Carla is our good friend whom we first me doing a home exchange several years ago. She is a classy lady and the girls love her!

CARVEGNANA, Italy - Carla is our dear friend who owns the house on Lake Como where we have stayed now 3 times. The house is an amazing old (probably 700 years at least) cottage perched at the top of a steep hil overlooking the Lake. It's in a tiny, tiny village called Carvegnana, which is part of the town of Lezzeno. It's on the eastern side of the Lake, which we prefer for its charm and slower pace (although Bellagio, the 'jewel of Lake Como' is just 10 minutes away and Como, the main city at the base of the lake, about 20). We stayed one year in Argeneno on the western side and it was fantastic, too, but it's a bit more touristy and more of a celebrity magnet ever since George Clooney bought a villa there.

It's a workout to get to Carla's

Carla met us at the house on Friday night (she lives and works in Milan, about an hour south) and we let the girls cook a pasta meal for us. The house is small but reeks of charm and it was great to catch up with Carla. She speaks some English and I can speak to her in French, and Toni can manage a bit of Italian (she stayed with Carla in Milan last year and took Italian lessons) -- but somehow it all works. She told us about her job at the leading cosmetic company in Italy and her plans to retire. Carla loves to travel and had just got back from Elba, and was planning on going to the Venice Film Festival next week, and the Africa in November. So she thinks she's ready for retirement just to get all her travel in.

On Saturday we went out to dinner on a restaurant right on the Lake, which was fun, especially watching Carla in her native environment. She knew the Sicilian chef and we had fresh lake fish of various varieties. That's where these picture are from. On Saturday we drive up to the top of the mountain above Bellagio - about 6,000 feet - to the town of Civenna - great views of both lake Como and Lake Lecco which connects to it.

All in all the Lake is a truly relaxing place to spend time and get away from the world. Carla's has no phone or Internet, which is a bit challenging (or course we found the Internet Cafe in Bellagio - free WiFi if you drink wine - not a bad deal) and it's one of the most peaceful place I have ever been. The roads are great, too - very, very narrow so it's like a constant Formual One race to get around. There is very special feel to the place, different than any other place we have visited. We joke with our friends Jacquie and Sherri that we are "People of the Lake: and I believe it is true - it's probably not a place for everyone and doesn't get the exposure of Tuscany or Florence or Rome, but for us, it's our 'home in Italy, thanks in large part to Carla's hospitality.