Lago
Di Como 2001
This section is specially dedicated to Tom
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One
happy guy, crossing the Alps by train from Zurich to Italy!
Our original itinerary was to fly on
September 13, 2001, from New
York to Milan,
to spend a few days on Lake Como prior to meeting our German friends
in Venice.
But, our flight was cancelled due to the horrible attacks of September
11.
We defiantly got out a few days later, on one of the first fiights from
JFK to London,
where we had an overnight stay and then flew to Zurich, Switzerland,
the next day.
This meant taking the train from Zurich to Italy, which fortuitously
enabled Tom
to have his first train trip across the Alps.
The peaceful and scenic train trip was a great way to diffuse the powerful
effect on Tom
of the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York,
which he had witnessed from his office windows in mid-town Manhatten
all that day.
We re-scheduled our Lake Como visit for the end of our Italy trip and
headed straight to Venice.
(I will add photos of the rest of our Italy tip later.)
Along with Venice, the Lake Como period was Tom's favorite part of the
Italy trip; so, I have first created a special section on this region
for him.
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is in Lombardy near the border between Italy and Switzerland.
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Panning around the lake shore.
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The pristine waters of Lake Como are framed by craggy Alpine peaks and
magnificent villas festooned with bougainvillea draped over its watery banks....
along with Palm trees!
The juxtoposition of the tropical plants and snowy mountains
is a sight to behold!
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Three long lakes converge to form Lake Como, joining in the Centro Lago area.
The four main towns of Bellaggio, Tremezzo, Menaggio and Varenna dot the shoreline.
These can be visited via the boats and buses connecting the towns in all three areas of the lake.
We explored the western coast by rental car, with Tom having great fun
driving in the Italian style... which is to say, racing around the mountainside!
Scenic vistas can be explored by taking funicular up the mountain to Brunate.
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Como
The city of Como lies at the foot of the western branch of the lake,
marked with the large white dot on the maps above.
Bellagio sits at the point where the two branches of the lake converge.
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Como
is the most populous of the cities
directly upon any of the Italian lakes. It is easily the most important
from
the standpoint of art and industry and has quite extensive trade with
Switzerland.
Its cathedral and its silk industry are both widely known, each for
its own excellence,
and during the course of its long history it has given the world a number
of famous men,
such as the two Plinies from Roman times and, in modern times, Volta,
the electrician.
Most interesting for us is its silk industry... more on that below.
Maps of Como
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We stayed at the Hotel Albergo Terminus
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The
Albergo Terminus is the result of a complete restructure of an early
20th-century, liberty-style building,
which still exudes the refined taste of Lombard aristocracy.
On Lake Como's shore, a couple of minutes away from the Cathedral and
Cavour Square,
its rooms are embellished by carved boiserie and stucco work and
feature all the comforts of a 4 star hotel. We were fortunate to get
a room here at the last minute,
due to the many cancellations the hotel received after the terror attacks
of September 11.
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Upon arrival, we dined at the "Bar delle Terme."
The café restaurant, with lounge-style seating for just 20 people,
has the warm atmosphere of an old private club.
The food and service is superb!
The atmosphere is exceptionally warm and cosy.
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During the summer month's guests are invited to sit on the terrace to
enjoy their meals,
having the lake and fragrant jasmine and oleander trees as a background.
View of the lake from Como
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More about
Como
Cllick here
Como Silk!
Continued...
Click
here