It was always on my bucket list to visit Italy, so when my lovely hubby booked us a week in a really posh hotel, in a room overlooking the gorgeous Lake Como, I was thrilled.
The Grand Hotel Menaggio was the height of luxury, with fabulous food, friendly staff and all-in-all, one of the best experiences of my life. A decade later, I still remember the intricate patterns the housemaid made from my nightie – it was beautiful origami, as you can see – the purple rose in the montage below.
It was one of the few holidays we had where we didn’t hire a car, but we discovered another way to travel – by ferry boat. Not the huge, well-equipped car ferries with shops, restaurants and cabins, but more like a bus or train, travelling across water instead of roads. The slow ferries take forever and the fast ferries are quite expensive, but Bri was 65, so the OAP discount was quite good. It got quite chilly – especially going to the extremes (Gravedonga/Como town), and a light jacket was essential. If we were to do it again, we’d consider going one way on the bus.
One of our favourite places to visit was Belaggio, and that and Varenna were linked together with Menaggio by frequent ferry trips. Como town was everything you might expect from a local centre – the market was fun and the Cathedral was awesome.
On one day, we were a tad ambitious, doing Villa Monastero (top) in the morning, a quick half, then Castello Di Vezio (bottom). Monastero was beautiful – stunning gardens and a dozen rooms filled with exquisite furniture and artwork.
The walk up to the castle was quite challenging, but so worth it for the views, the history, the falcons and especially the ghosts. I have dodgy knees and one of them swelled up to twice the size by the time we walked back down. If we had a do-over we’d do that 1st, then maybe return for Monastero another day. Villa Carlotta would be my 2nd choice – it was pouring when we did it, but there was still plenty to see.
Villa Carlotta would be my 2nd choice – it was pouring when we did it, but there was still plenty to see.
Here’s a flavour of our visit:
JRo Author 