Misty Lake Como of Lombardy, Italy

“Misty mountain tops, serene lakeshore walks. I could stay here forever...!”

 

Such an enthusiastic entry indeed, in my travel journal. My husband Alex and I were in Milan, Italy, when we learned that the Lombardy Lake District of north Italy was only an hour away by train. We have heard of and read about Lake Como, and Bellagio, the writers’ haven overlooking the lake, from friends who enthused about its quiet beauty. It didn’t matter that it was raining lightly that early spring day when we set out of our Milan hotel, the Hotel Zara, only a few blocks away from the Stazione Centrale. The sign on the train that we took said “Basel,” though, which was the terminal station, and for a few seconds we toyed with the idea of going straight to this town, or even Lugano, which was nearer. In the end, Alex and I promised to save the Swiss trips for another day. As we went out of Como’s Stazione San Giovanni, a light drizzle greeted us; the chilly air nearly froze our ears, and we had to bundle up some more with extra scarves and jackets. There were long stone steps leading towards a small park, and the profusion of colorful tulips between the stairs made us pause. They grew like scarlet and blushing pink carpets, all the way down to the street level, in spite of the cold weather (or perhaps, because of it). An installation art of two large bronze hands painted gray was at the center of the park after the steps; the hands were wrinkled, the right held upright towards the icy sky, and the left supine and curved, as if begging for warmth. We followed our trusty guide book’s directions to turn left after the stone steps, then right; before we knew it we “bumped” into Lake Como, a large body of water that was covered in thin mist. Across the lake was a vista of beautiful villas and houses perched on different levels, stark against dark green mountains. This backdrop looked eerily beautiful, as it changed every time the mist moved. For a moment, a part of the mountain disappeared while some parts were lightly covered, as the silhouettes of the houses were limned through the floating shapes of the vapor. By the lakeside, many ferry boats, tied to colorful blue and white poles, announced “Lake Tours” for a day. There were three long lakes that formed the forked Lake Como, joined at the towns of Bellagio, Menaggio, and Varenna, and a ferry boat ride enabled one to look at the towns from the lake in just a couple of hours. We reached Piazza Cavour, the main square, and discovered an ongoing country fair – colorful kiosks sold cheese, fruits, candy and bread, the many varieties making our heads giddy. One of the shops had an overload of candy in multi-hued shapes and sizes. I espied some Turkish delights rolled in fine coconut in one corner, and couldn’t help but get two small pouches of the sweet, gelatinous and fragrant rectangles. A large offering too of bread, some painted and shaped to look like red apples, tempted the eyes. Tearing ourselves away from such enticing goods, we continued, following the curve of the lake, from time to time pausing to look at the beautiful ivy-covered villas and terraced windows along the way, until we reached a barrier of a private property. We turned back, reached the center of town again, and discovered the beautiful duomo (Cathedral).