SYNERGISE
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This is the southern gateway to Italy from the Alps. Lying in a beautiful valley between tall mountains, with its micro-climate, olive groves, world-famous vineyards and stunning scenery, Lake Garda offers a delightful setting in which to laze for a week or so in the sunshine alongside Italy's largest lake, being 51.6 km long, 4 km wide at the northern end, and 17 km wide at the southern end. You would cover some 160 km if you drove around it. Many would say this is Italy's most beautiful lake. It is a sun trap that lies between the Alps and the Dolomites. The north is bordered by perpendicular cliffs covered with pine forests, and the southern part widens such that the farther side of the lake is hardly distinguishable with the naked eye. The southern part of the lake has an almost Mediterranean climate. Boats and hydrofoils ply the lake and the Italian cities of Verona, Brescia and even Venice are within easy reach for day trips. Now our experience with the hotel was not uncommon, and it should be noted that the majority of hotels are small, often family-run, and they do not offer the room size or scale of choices you might expect to find in other Mediterranean destinations (such as Portugal or Spain, for example). Buffet breakfast is often limited, air conditioning is controlled by the government, and facilities often tend to be minimal. If all this is a big put-off, weigh against it the beauty of the place for, in my opinion, this more than compensates simple living for a week; and a week, is probably just about long enough to take in Lake Garda — unless you are looking for a place for a major 'chill'. And don't think the food is poor just because breakfasts might be limited; in general, the food everywhere is fresh and of a high standard: some say it is to 'die for' — although I feel this is a rather unfortunate way of putting it. In the main, it is also very reasonably priced, as are drinks. And how wonderful to be trusted and to have open tabs without the risk of losing sight of your credit card. Anywhere you go on Lake Garda has great eating places, wonderful food and a great café culture. You can taste the freshness of the food in every bite; people go out each day to get their bread here, so it is without preservatives; these are not supermarket imitations engineered to 'last'. Taste what food is really about — and what you have been missing. Immerse yourself in the true café culture, adjust your speed to tick-over like the residents, enjoy the slow pace of life; it is not often that modern living allows for this. Is this not what you came to Lake Garda for, anyway? (What? You wanted some night life? Then look at some other destinations, my friend, for Garda is rather too tranquil for that.) Yes, it has to be admitted, the average tourist age is rather high around these parts, but don't let any lack of age prevent you from discovering these beauties; although, this said, I would not recommend this as a family destination. Why take your kids to break the tranquility? It will not be appreciated! Where you stay on Lake Garda affects whether you can add 'peace' to your list of benefits. 'Place = pace' around these parts; some buzz more than others. We went at the end of September — the end of their holiday season — and we saw it at its quietest before places close and the scene becomes quite different. And, guess what, we got a dose of rain and cold from Day 1. (Well, you know my luck by now!) After weeks of sun and no rain, from the day we arrived, we had three days with serious periods of rain. But then the sun came out properly and it was a different place. Looking across a huge expanse of water on a rainy day and looking across a huge expanse of water on a sunny day are two completely different experiences; I would recommend the latter. We had come from England where, after the dreadful summer in which a sunny day was remarkable, we found ourselves in a place where a rainy day was remarkable. We chose to stay at Garda itself and, I think it, was a good decision — for us. If offers good boating links, easy bus access to Verona and the eastern lakeside towns; the Verona-Riva bus link is a relatively fast and inexpensive way to travel — with beautiful lakeside views thrown-in for much of the route alongside the eastern shore via Bardolino, Garda, Malcesine and Torbole. Of the places we visited around the lake, here's my quick overview: Garda, on the eastern shore, is laid-back and tranquil and well-placed for communications; Bardolino, a couple of miles south of this, is packed with accommodation and camp sites and is a bit more up-marked in the way of shops, but busier; Sirmione, on the southern shore, is heaving, very tourist-based and a strange cross between quaint and tourist-tacky; Malcesine, on the eastern shore but near the north end of the lake, is quaint, cobbly, bustling and atmospheric.
While we're on transport, if you go by bus, it is best to buy your ticket at a bus station or tobacconist; if you want a return you get two singles. You 'validate' the ticket by putting it in a slot on the bus when you get on. You can buy a ticket on the bus but it will cost more. Okay, that's the general stuff over, now let's consider some of the locations and potential trip destinations. Garda
BardolinoWalking south along the promenade from Garda to Bardolino is an entirely different proposition; much easier, although, it has to be said, it is a fair walk; a couple of miles, at my estimate. (You could take the bus if this is not for you.) You pass countless caravan and camping sites on the way but, thankfully, they are well hidden behind hedges and the lakeside is alongside your walk all the way. The place is world renown for Bardolino wine, and the day we took this walk was the day of their wine festival. It was heaving with people at the various stalls offering all manner of wines; the pros had red, dangly glass-holders around their neck so they could sample the wines from their own sanitized glass.
Sirmione
This is not to say there are not some beautiful areas to be found in Sirmione, plus the usual wide choice of eating places, but it is just that moving between them is a bit of a nightmare. Given that we visited at the end of the season, and found it heaving with visitors, I hate to think what it is like when it is really busy! I guess the best time to catch this town is in the winter when the tourist nightmare dies down. Malcesine
Talking of the mountain, you can get a revolving cable car from the upper part of the town to the top of Monte Baldo in just ten minutes. If you are the somewhat energetic type you are allowed to take your mountain bike or paraglider up with you. Personally I prefer the idea of the rotating cabin to either of these methods of descent. Another popular tourist destination at the north end of the lake is Riva del Garda. I didn't get there, but it is noted for its gardens and promenade areas. The Dolomites Tour
Now you must understand that living in the mountains is not a bit like living anywhere else. For a start it gets very, very cold in the winter. Secondly, it is expensive to get energy to the houses/cabins. Thirdly, it is hard to see much of life — other than the wonders of Nature around you, and the same old people. So even finding someone to marry is a difficult job. But they have that cracked in the Tyrol. The answer, of course, is a blue apron. (Why didn't the rest of us think of it?) The older generation of men wear a blue apron to signify if they are 'spoken for', but they turn up the corners of the blue apron if they are 'available'. Now this is not just on a 'blue apron day' as you might expect, but all the time! I guess they cannot pass up the opportunity of missing out on a passing tourist that would suit. Cold is as cold gets in the mountain cabins, and wood is the cheapest and most sensible way of warming them; always has been. So the traditional scheme was to have a central 'tile oven'; the service part of the oven, in the kitchen, did the cooking, but the rear of the oven projected into the family room as a tiled cube that radiated delicious heat. It made sense to heat the one room, you see, and to heck with the rest of the place. I saw an example of this that included a wooden structure right on top of the tile oven that used to be a bed; I don't suppose they complained of the cold at night! Alongside it were seats, for daytime enjoyment. Windows are small, hereabouts, to minimize heat loss.
Some of my favourite travel memories are the beauties of the mountains and valleys in Switzerland; the Dolomites have the same appeal. And to be near to such scenery in the virtual Mediterranean climate of Garda is a fantastic bonus. In fact, to use a recently learned Italian word, it is fantastico! See also: Ed's other trip in Italy
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