Post No3 - 2012 Trip - The Italian Lakes

So, here we are, having had our wonderful Swiss experiences, including paying over €10 for a 1.5 litre of mineral water, and we headed back into Italy once again, this time towards Lake Como.

We decided to break the journey for the night before Como, as we weren't sure what town on the lake we were heading for, so we stopped off at Lake Orta, known as the Cinderella Lake. Such a pretty and unspoilt spot, even though the weather had decided to do its best to deter us, and I loved the little island (isola san Giulio) crammed with houses smack bang in the middle of the lake, just minutes by ferry from Orta san Giulio where we stayed.

Next it was onto Lake Como and we found a nice hotel in a small village on the western shores called Argegno. The hotel was overlooking the lake (which by now was almost hidden through the heavy rain) but ho hum. Couldn't let it spoil things.

Over the next few days we explored some of the lovely little lakeside villages. The ferry on the doorstep was great, but in hindsight one really needs to check out the ferry routes if they want to be able to travel right around the lake easily. We found the ferry a tad tricky as various parts of the lake were broken up into ferry sections, so it was a bit difficult to get to some of the smaller villages and the ferries weren't very frequent to and from these. Next time though!

It was very wet in Bellagio though, so we really didn't see what is considered by many to be the most beautiful village on Lake Como, at its best.

Much to Rita's excitement we did sail right past George Clooney's large waterfront pad, and the ferry paused there for a bit, and tooted its horn a few times, I would imagine for the benefit of the 2 American gals the captain seemed to have stashed on the bridge! No sign of anyone waving back to us though!

 I also have to admit that we did cruise past George's house the next day, and one little Rita hoped out and was photographed grinning and touching his wrought-iron fence. Oh well!



Como itself was an interesting town and we came across a huge market, which sort of sucked us girls in for a couple of hours - thank god Peter has the patience of a saint!

All in all the Lake Como experience was great. There are some beautiful villages tucked in every corner of the lake, and the overall impression of lushness. Although the architecture is slightly similar to some of the coastal villages, it looks very different in the lake setting, and of course, we mustn't forget the feeling of wealth here on Lake Como!