Back In Italia

And just like that we found ourselves back it Italy. It wasn’t a long journey today; a mere 30 minutes had us across the border and on our way to Lake Como. After looking into a few options on where to stay, we decided on Bellagio. Everyone in America has probably heard about Lake Como, thanks in large part to the numerous celebrities that have bought second homes here like George Clooney and Richard Branson. This has also been a popular movie set in Hollywood, with films like Oceans Twelve, Casino Royale, and Star Wars 2 being shot here. They also filmed The Other Man here recently, an Antonio Banderas film due out at Christmas. With all the hype, Angie and I were expecting a lot of glitz and glamour, but found nothing of the sort. While it was certainly beautiful, we’ve found other Italian (and Swiss) lakes that we’ve enjoyed more. We’ve deduced that what makes this area so unique, is that the shoreline is often dotted with large and extravagant villas. Being surrounded by Alps and close to cities like Milan, this was a popular retreat for wealthy 18th century aristocrats. Today many of the mansions are in need of repair, but you can’t find properties like these just anywhere, and today's wealthy have been snatching them up. We were told that when Richard Branson bought his villa, he was bidding against Bruce Springsteen and Liza Minnelli. And where the rich and famous go, the tourists will follow.

Aside from our touring around the lake, we also managed a day trip into Milan. This bustling cosmopolitan city, known as the fashion capital of the world, is full of beautiful buildings (and people). We spent most of our time here in Castello Sforzesco (the enormous city fortress) and the amazing Cathedral.

Downtown Careno, just south of Bellagio. On the docks in Bellagio.
This is San Giovanni Church, the oldest in the Bellagio area.
The entrance to Castello Sforzesco in Milan.
The Cathedral in Milan with its many spires.

After a long climb to the roof of the Cathedral, Ella decided to take a little rest.

The views from the roof were great, but gone are the Alps as this city is flat.




The last two photos are taken in Galleria Vittorio Emmanuele II, a popular high-end shopping mall in the city center. (Vittorio was the first King of a united Italy, from 1861 to 1878.)