Today was the last day a piedi (on foot), so we decided to spend the day at Lake Como.  Going to an area with such a reputation for exclusivity, I decided to splurge on Primo Classe train tickets from Milan to Como – for the 36 minute train ride – for an extra €4 total.  Ah, Kevin & I were in high cotton for a while.  The worst part was that as we were sitting in our seats, someone was having trouble finding theirs and they asked me for help.  I had to motion to il carrello di seconda classe – awkward!

George Clooney was not available to meet us at the train station today, so we decided on the ferry.  Research told me to buy the ferry ticket right away, explore the town of Como and come back later to catch the ferry.  The lines for the ticket office were real chaos.  Headed to the window with the intention to get on the ferry in an hour and I ended up with the ferry NOW!  So much for exploring the town.

To give some context, Milford Lake (KS) is 24 sq miles, Lake Lanier (GA) is 58 sq miles, Boone Lake (TN) is 7 sq miles and Lake Como is 56 sq miles.  It is over 1300 feet deep at points with the mountains shooting up at the shoreline.  Just as we felt in Burano, each view is more beautiful than the last.  And it wasn’t about any huge castle, it was about the unimaginable view, the cool breezes and the clear water.

Lake Como Italy

Lake Como Italy

Fishing on Lake Como

Lake Como Italy

Lake Como Italy

Lake Como Italy

Lake Como Italy

Lake Como Italy

Lake Como Italy

After a couple hours on the ferry to Bellagio, we hopped off to explore and eat.

Steps to lunch

It’s orange – I had to have it!

Day-drinking and eating pasta for lunch doesn’t seem so bad when you have to work so hard to get there.  Lunch was beyond Kevin in the above picture.  After that work out, the beautiful orange spritzer was (the start of) my reward.  We were told the Aperol Spritzer was the hottest cocktail in the world right now, so between that and being orange, I was in.  While cool and refreshing, it has quite an earthy flavor that I did not expect, so I did not have another.  Lunch was what we pictured of an Italian lunch – outside in the shade, people walking by, wine, pasta and laughter – this lunch had it all.  As we were about to leave, our table neighbors, Marco and his friend, offered us a glass of wine.  Not wanting to offend, we obliged.  We sat for a bit longer, each trying our best to figure out what the other was saying and just realizing it didn’t matter, we were still connecting.  They wished us well for the rest of our stay in Italy and we were off…down the many steps…to the bottom!  Whew!

We caught the ferry to Varenna and made our way back to Milan by train.  Below are a few more scenes from today.  You can click on any picture to see it larger.

Bellagio Italy

Varenna Italy

Lake Como Italy

Varenna Italy

Lake Como Italy

Lake Como Italy

Lake Como Italy

Varenna Italy

One more sleep until we pick up the motorcycle.  To Kevin, it’s Motorcycle Eve!  We’ll see how much sleep he gets!  Buona notte – good night.