# ED Trip Report--Northern Italy



## Asteroid (Aug 17, 2005)

*Sirmione in Lago di Garda*

People have been coming here for the lake and hot springs since the Roman times.
We had reservations for Hotel Eden but not the complete address to input in the nav. We knew that it was in the town center so we called as we approached. Turned out the hotel is inside the castle walls.

1) You must check-in with the police booth and verify that you have a reservation before they let you in the castle, which at first appears like a pedestrian zone.
2) The policeman at the booth gave us directions in Italian, but once inside it was a little confusing because we could see the entrance to the hotel parking, but not the hotel. A nice gentleman having dinner in one of the outdoor tables sensed our confusion so he came over and gave us final directions. The merchants and the restaurants give just enough space.
3) Driving is restricted inside the castle wall, altogether banned at certain hours, and you cannot idle at red lights (engine off).
4) Saw this car with Monaco plates a couple of times. Maybe came for the hot springs.


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## Asteroid (Aug 17, 2005)

*The Cinque Terre*

We stayed in a B&B in Monterosso al Mare. Here more than in Venice, we learned the importance of packing light, as we found that the B&B was 80 steps up from the street. The B&B opened last year and is located in a renovated farmhouse.

We did the hike to all five villages starting in Monterosso, which gets you the 2 longer/harder hikes first (1.5-2 hrs each). You must get a trail pass to do the hike as there are checkpoints as you enter/leave each village. We bought the 8€ combination day pass that included unlimited train rides, some museums, and somewhere there were guided mountain bike rides.

1) Stop and go. As reported by others, the RTTI works in Germany but not in Italy.
2) Made a lunch stop in Cremona. This is the Duomo in Piazza del Commune. No Stradivari sighting.
3) In Monterosso, we ate at Il Pirata at the innkeeper's recommendation. Very long wait unless you go early (meaning soon after they open at 7PM). Don't belive the "No cover" on the frame, they charged it here, but the food is good. Almost every restaurant had a cover charge, typically 2-3€ for water and/or bread (sometimes breadsticks in sealed packages i.e. not freshly made). Usually you'll get olive oil and sometimes with vinegar and if they're good you'll get aceto balsamico from Modena. One time my MIL requested butter (burro) and there was a 3€ charge in the bill for it. 
4) I attached the map I got from the town information. It also has a list of hotels. The old part of Monterosso is the right side in the map. The train station is in the new side.


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## Tanning machine (Feb 21, 2002)

Asteroid said:


> Don't belive the "No cover" on the frame, .


Go easy -- they just forgot the asterisk to the bottom of the menu.


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## am_ver (Jul 12, 2005)

Tanning machine said:


> Go easy -- they just forgot the asterisk to the bottom of the menu.


LOL


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## Asteroid (Aug 17, 2005)

*More Monterosso and Cinque Terre*

1) Our room in Casa dei Limoni. At the top of the hill. After hiking the 5 villages, we took the train back but it was still a hike back to the B&B.
2) Parking structure at the beginning of town, just before the gate. It was 15€/day, it's cozy inside. I had to make 3-point turns to get in and to get around the inside.
3) Interesting wine labels in Corniglia. There was another row of bottles with A. Hitler's likeness. :tsk: I won't post those here. 
4) On the trail between Corniglia and Manarola, I stopped to drink some water and noticed a HUGE animal behind the fence. It was this dog, which appeared really friendly. Is this a Presa Canario? :dunno:

5) One view of Riomaggiore. We also drove here, the road is narrow in some sections, but fun and with nice views.
6-8) Harvest time is hard work. There are some rigs that run on a raised track like a small monorail. For some reason, they weren't running this one to the end of the track and were hauling grapes from there and up the steps.

9) They seem to like cats there. Notice this is price-less.  
10) We ate at his restaurant CIAK, to my ears it sounded like it was pronouced like Chakah His kitchen has a window into the main street in town. Ciak seemed to have a mini empire there. There is a CIAK wine bar, the store across the restaurant and some other business had his name. The restaurant was packed nightly. We liked his seafood risotto. :thumbup:


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## SJAPoc (Apr 14, 2007)

How much for the cat? 

Enjoying your great report and pictures. Thank you!


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## adc (Apr 1, 2003)

Grazie!

Your pictures of Verona, Venezia and Cinque Terre brought back excellent memories... :thumbup:


Do you have a pic of your car in profile? I've never seen Space Grey on a 5-er before, looks amazing from what I can tell...


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## Asteroid (Aug 17, 2005)

*Bellagio and Lago di Como*

For our visit to Lake Como we stayed in Bellagio. If you stay in town, call the hotel for the code to open the gate that gets you into the pedestrian area. Once inside, street parking in the white lines is free. I don't think any hotels have indoor or private parking, except maybe Villa Serbelloni :bling: (>500€). Did not go looking for George Clooney's villa, which is in Laglio. Scenes of Ocean's 13 we shot there so I have to check it out.

1) Many of the roads around here did not have lane dividing lines. Locals like to go fast, got passed often by Fiat Puntos and VW Lupos. You had to keep an eye for buses rounding curves, I had to back up a few feet for a concrete truck.
2) From Castello di Vezio, up the hill from Varenna, view of the Lecco and Como branches of the lake, Bellagio is in the middle.
3) Bellagio is a very nice small town and it gets nicer in the evening when the day-trip crowds are gone. Yes, it is very touristy, and it has been since Roman times. 
4) We ate here at hotel staff recommendation for local cuisine. San Giacomo gets packed early, shortly after 7PM. For waiting customers' comfort, they provide cushions to sit on the steps. Food was good, we went back a second night. There are many choices for dining here, but most others seemed to have seating available.

5-6) Two views of Varenna. We hiked up to Castello di Vezio to get these views. Took more than the 20-minute walk written in the guidebook.


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## Asteroid (Aug 17, 2005)

*Ends in Hohenschangau*

1) Jaguar taxi in Lugano, Switzerland. Had lunch here and plan went awry as we forgot that we needed CHF to pay for parking.
2) Ferry from Bellagio to Cadenabbia.
3) Did not take too many car pix. This is in Bolzano.
4) Parking in the hotel in Hohenschwangau.
5) No Tylenol in Italy or Switzerland. This was the alternative.
6) At night.

THE END.


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## adc (Apr 1, 2003)

Asteroid said:


> THE END.


Thank you for your report.

But... the end? There won't be another one down the road?


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## Alex Baumann (Dec 19, 2001)

Great report, great pics.

BTW, that 'HUGE' animal is a Mastino Napoletano. Beautiful dogs.


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## SJAPoc (Apr 14, 2007)

Hi Asteroid... Clicked on your sig and read your report once again . Great reading and the pictures are excellent! Thanks again for sharing your adventure :thumbup:


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## Asteroid (Aug 17, 2005)

SJAPoc said:


> Hi Asteroid... Clicked on your sig and read your report once again . Great reading and the pictures are excellent! Thanks again for sharing your adventure :thumbup:


Holy thread bump.

Maybe you have reached the stage where OCD and separation anxiety kick in the hardest. :rofl:

Re-delivery is imminent. (Isn't it?)


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## b-y (Sep 14, 2004)

*Great photos and descriptions.* I used to think we should get a commission from the Sudtirol/Alto Adige tourism people, but maybe that should be expanded to all of Northern Italy. :thumbup:

*Question:* When I saw _Aida_ at the Baths of Caracalla in Rome, there were (live) elephants on stage. Did they make it to Verona?


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## SJAPoc (Apr 14, 2007)

Asteroid said:


> Holy thread bump.
> 
> Maybe you have reached the stage where OCD and separation anxiety kick in the hardest. :rofl:
> 
> Re-delivery is imminent. (Isn't it?)


I know... it's a sickness! :roundel:



b-y said:


> *Question:* When I saw _Aida_ at the Baths of Caracalla in Rome, there were (live) elephants on stage. Did they make it to Verona?


*b-y...* Pictures? :dunno:

BTW... The bump is well deserved :thumbup:


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## Asteroid (Aug 17, 2005)

b-y said:


> *Question:* When I saw _Aida_ at the Baths of Caracalla in Rome, there were (live) elephants on stage. Did they make it to Verona?


No live elephants in Verona, instead we got ones made of fabric draped over a clothesline.


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## b-y (Sep 14, 2004)

> *b-y...* Pictures? :dunno:


It was a long time ago, so I did some checking to see if I was remembering correctly. I could not find any photos (I'll check some more tonight), but I did find enough to convince me that I had not imaged seeing the elephants:



> Baths of Caracalla: Sadly, in the last few years these musical evenings stopped. No longer can you see the famous super productions of "Aida", with elephants and dromedaries enlivening the stage. When the sopranos hit high C, archeologists shuddered as they felt the walls, like glass, were being shattered by the sound waves.
> 
> URL: http://web.tiscali.it/romaonlineguide/Pages/eng/rantica/sAWy2.htm





> Opera returns to Rome's Baths of Caracalla
> Posted Fri Jun 27, 2003 11:46am AEST
> 
> Rome's opera will return to the imposing ruins of the Baths of Caracalla next month with a performance of Bizet's Carmen, 10 years after operas were last staged there, director Francesco Ernani has announced. ...
> ...


and this:



> Silvia Luraghi's Letters from Milan 2005. Last summer, after several years of disruption, the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma finally resumed its summer season at the Baths of Caracalla. ...
> The production was directed by Paolo Micchichè, and was originally designed for Washington Opera during the restoration of the Kennedy Center, when the company was performing at DAR Constitution Hall. For this reason, films and projections are used in place of sets; this proved easily adaptable to the larger space of the Baths, with the whole area of the ruins serving as a screen. The open space lent itself particularly well to the triumphal scene, which featured only a small number of extras bearing banners against a background projection of a bigger triumphal scene. The orchestra was conducted by Plácido Domingo on the first two nights; later, Giovanni Reggioli conducted several performances.
> 
> URL: http://www.operajaponica.org/archives/milan/milanletterpast05.htm


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## mwagner1 (Aug 13, 2004)

What a killer report and great images!!!! Looks like you had a great trip....by the way, how was the performance of Aida?? How was the evening's Radames?? Aida?? How was the orchestra as well as on stage trumpet players?? I have to ask, because twice in my life I have played trumpet on stage for some performances and one time, I played in the off stage band...I love the opera....

Cheers,


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## boothguy (Feb 1, 2007)

Don't know how I missed this excellent report and evocative pics of some of my fave places in northern Italia the first time around. I may have been sulking since this was about the time I originallly wanted to do my own ED, but was denied my September slot in early May of '07. Glad Stuart bumped the thread.

_Forse lei parla Italiano, non e vero?_


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