Friday 23rd Our last day at Cannero

We awoke to find that the storm had largely cleared and in spite of a poor forecast the sky appeared to be clearing. After a leisurely breakfast we watched the weather slowly improve and after reading on out lovely balcony for a while the sun came out and off we went for another walk.

The afternoon turned out to be the sunmniest and hottest of our holiday and after the LLW decreed it was time for the Gelateria again we decided to venture into the lake for a swim.

A few hundred yards away from the Hapimag residence is a very nice public Lido with a good beach at the lake and we enjoyed a fairly cool swim and shared the wonderful views with a cormorant which had taken up residence on the swimming platform.

A beautiful hot day for our last day at Cannero and we loved the Hapimag site which has a superb location and excellent appartments. Tomorrow we head home after a really good holiday which has left us wondering why 1t has taken us so long to return to this beautiful area.

Thursday 22nd. Lake Orta

We had decided to explore one of the smaller lakes, :Lake Orta and set off for the hours trip down Lake Maggiore and west to Orta. The first part of the drive after leaving Maggiore was unremarkable with some fairly industrial small towns. However when we reached Orta it was lovely and after driving down the easter side, we stopped for quite a while at San Guilo d'Orta which is absolutely lovely.

We walked all around the town, decided against eating at the Michelin two starred Villa Crespi and had a very good lunch right by the lake with views across to the pilgrimage island of San Guilio.

Back then to Cannero via the opposite west bank of Lake Orta and after an easy drive it became clear that the storm clouds were gathering. Dinner on our balcony was accompanied by thunder, lightning and torrential rain which continued throughout the night.

Wednesday 21st The market at Luino

Wednesday is the day for the largest market in the area at Luino which is almost directly across the lake from Cannero so off we went for the short ferry trip. The town itself was not particulaly exciting but the market was indeed very large and transpired to be primarilly a handbag market!! The LLW was in heaven!

Ahead of recent trips I have noticed hat the LLW is inclined to say just before we leave "I don't think I need a handbag on this trip do you?". This translated means I am going to buy at least one more whilst on holiday!

After an enjoyable time wandering around the market and having a panini for lunch we walked along the lakeside and then returned to Cannero with great views from the ferry.

Tuesday 20th. Cannobia

Cannero Riviera has a lovely long promenade alongside the lake and we have come to enjoy a regular 2 mile walk along and back. It never becomes boring as the views across the lake are constantly changing with the weather.

After our walk we decided to head a few miles up the lake to the town of Cannobia which is delightful and unspoilt.

Monday 19th, Stresa and the Borromean Islands

Monday dawned bright and sunny and we had decided to drive down the lake to Verbania and then possibly on to the Borromean Islands. It was easy going and in spite of the normal Italian drivers who would seem to regard any speed limit as an affront to their freedom to drive like madmen, we drove on to Stresa and caught a boat to the Borromean islands stopping first at Isola dei Pescatori

None of the islands are large and it did not take long to walk all around Pescatori and we stopped for a coffee at a small bar where the LLW joined the proprietor in encouraging a relunctant duck to return to the lake.

On then to Isola Bella which, I had assumed was named so since it is a beautiful island, but apparently in 1630,  Carlo III Borromeo decided to name the island after his wife Isabella D'Adda. So it became Isola Isabella later shortened to Isola Bella!

The palace is extraordinary and well quite palatial! The gardens replete with white peacocks and very disinterested pea hens are even more extraordinary and OTT but lovely.

We stopped for lunch at a really good and surprisingly inexpensive restaurant on the island where the owner was very keen to discuss the merits of the local wines. Back then to Stresa for a wander around the old town and time to marvel at the numerous palace hotels that were built when Stresa was a must visit location on the Grand Tour. Oh and the first shoes of the holiday were purchased!!

More provisions were needed on our way home and for the first time ever we visited a Lidl supermarket, In spite of the LLW's protestations that it simply was not like Waitrose, we came away with some excellent food and wine at unbelievably low prices.

A great day and we are wondering why it has taken us so long to revisit the Italian Lakes.

Sunday 18th around Cannero Riviera

In true Swiss fashion the Hapimag site is very well organised and has an underground garage, a restaurant, a mini market and, most important of all from the LLW's perspective, a Gelateria!!

We spent the morning walking around Cannero Riviera and quickly discovered a number of attractive hotels and restaurants with terraces overlooking the lake. Being Sunday, the LLW decreed that lunch by the lake was definitely required and we had a very good meal with stunning views.

More walks around the village in the afternoon and evening and having discovered a camp site at the southern end, Ray decided that it looked like the very one that we had stayed at some 30+ years ago!

Saturday 17th. A ferry trip to the city of Lugano and then on to Lake Maggiore

We planned to leave the car at Gandria and to catch the ferry to Lugano city for the morning.

The lake was spectacularly beautiful and clearly all was right with the world. Glorious views all around as we sailed to Lugano and disembarked around 10:30.  We did not venture very far but the lakeside promenade and the old town close to the lake are very attractive and clearly its a very prosperous city. There was even an open air car show to keep Ray interested, although the LLW was not very impressed with his interest in the Porsche Cayman!

After a very pleasant light lunch in one of the squares, we set off to catch the 13:30 ferry back to Gandria and climbed the numerous steps and steep alleyways back up to the car park close to the main road. A really lovely stay in Gandria and we enjoyed every minute. Time to head off around Lugano city and then north to Locarno at the head of Lake Maggiore. Lots of traffic around Lugano but once out of the city it was an easy drive to Locarno. Once at Locarno we rounded the northern end of Maggiore and headed south along the western side. In 20 mins or so we arrived at Cannero Riviera the site of Hapimag and our base for the next week. A very attractive site built around a small marina with great views over the lake.

Friday 16th Around Lake Como and on to Gandria

A lovely morning and we set off after breakfast for our drive around Lake Como. Initially we headed south east to the southern tip of the lake at Lecco.

All very beautiful with hundreds of elegant period villas. Lake Como is surround by very steep, completely wooded. hillsides with high mountains behind and this all adds to the dramatic setting. There was brief stop at Colico near the top of the lake for a quick coffee (the cheapest ever!)

before rounding the head of the lake and heading south again toward Menaggio where we planned to stop for lunch. Menaggio is delightful!

Brilliant sunshine and clear views across Lake Como helped but it really is a very pretty small town with a lovely situation and we enjoyed a light lunch in the Piazza close by the lake.

Time to head off and to leave Lake Como. We drove almost directly west over the hills and down towards Lake Lugano, leaving Italy and crossing into Switzerland. Some 30+ years ago we had enjoyed a memorable stop at Gandria on the northern side of Lake Lugano and we were delighted to discover that Gandria had hardly changed.

One of the main reasons for this is that it is built on a very steep hillside right down to the lake and there is not much room for any development. Our overnight stay was at the Hotel Moosman and we had a room with a lake view, including a small balcony almost overhanging the lake. Just lovely!

For dinner we found a small restaurant with a wonderful view and we are pretty sure that it is the same one that we visited all of those years ago. We enjoyed an absolutely delicious meal of Rabbit with Tagliatelli followed by some calorie free puddings (??)

Thursday 15th May Off to Lake Como

In spite of the French air traffic controllers flight our easyJet flight from Gatwick took off only 30 mins late and flying over Belgium and Germany, caught up time to be only 10 mins late at Milan Malpensa. Ray went straight through customs to collect the Europcar hire car whilst the LLW waited for the solitary bag! A good move as this saved about 20 mins and the queques at  the car hire desks grew rapidly. We were delighted to be allocated a very smart Fiat 500 and off we went trying to follow an awful photocopied map which was all that was on offer from Europcar. This was soon suplemented by the excellent map on Ray's iPhone and we successfully found the exit from the Milan autostrada and were soon on our way to Como.

Once we came off the main roads at Como town it was a very scenic, windy but not difficult drive to our first overnight stop at Bellagio which is delightful. Very sunny but windy as the temperature cooled down quite rapidly as the sun disappeared behing the high mountains around the lake. The LLW was soon fortified with a glass of Pinot Grigio and we enjoyed a very pleasant dinner close to the lake. Our hotel was up a very narrow and steep cobbled street so there was plenty of exercise for the quads!

Parking is tricky in Bellagio and we were lucky to find a space right by the lake which is chageable from 08:00 to 20:00 so the LLW delegated responsibility of recharging the meter to Ray the next morning! We planned to travel the full length of Lake Como before heading of to Lugano so we set off straight after Breakfast. Sad to leave Bellagio after such a short stay but delighted to have seen it.