Excursions in Lake Como

I love Italy! The culture, people, food, and overall resonance of the Italian language infiltrates a permanent smile on my face every time I travel within the country.

Since Jim and I moved to London almost a year and a half ago, we’ve seized the opportunity to travel to Italy whenever we get the chance – Venice, Positano, Amalfi, Pompeii and Courmayeur are among the places I’ve now toured.

This time, a friend’s wedding in Lake Como was our justification to visit some Lake Como villages and nearby Milan.

Lake Como villages…

Bellagio

An “upturned Y shape”, the town of Bellagio ” is a small medieval town that divides the two southern branches of the lake (Como)”. (Bellagio tourist info)

Even on a rainy day, this town was surreal to see in person. Reminding me of a view I’d see only on a postcard, every corner I turned was another vision of beauty.

A relaxed, peaceful town, it’s not necessary to have a schedule or itinerary when visiting this part of Italy.

We began with a leisurely stroll throughout the town, followed by a long Italian lunch filled with pizza, pasta, and wine. Afterwards, we browsed through Italian clothing shops before ending (and completing!)our day in Bellagio with a gelato.

Cernobbio

Along the west shore of Lake Como is the town of Cernobbio. A small charming town, it has a good selection of restaurants, bars, cafes and of course, gelato…

The first day we arrived, while Jim unfortunately attended to a few work calls, I decided to explore the area.  On my own, I set off from our hotel and walked about fifteen minutes to the center of the town of Cernobbio.

It was easy to fall in love at first sight! Quiet but still pleasantly occupied, the town is directly next to the lake and also has a view of the surrounding mountains.

Two nights later, Jim and I returned to Cernobbio together to walk through the town. We enjoyed dinner there together and later met up with other friends also in town for the wedding for an after dinner espresso.

A town famous for its villas and hotels, the architecture is breathtaking, and old. Many of the villas date back to the 16th and 17th century, one of which was the site of the wedding reception we attended in Lake Como…

A Lake Como Wedding at Villa Pizzo

A dream setting, I imagine many girls would jump at the chance to get married on the Villa Pizzo grounds. Transported to our destination by shuttle bus, we stopped off in front of a gated entrance and preceded down the hill towards the lakefront.

Villa Pizzo was “built in the sixteenth century and restored a number of times…containing frescoes from the seventeenth century,”  (Lago di Como info)

All morning and afternoon, the weather was miserable. Heavy rain and clouds blocked out views to the other side of the lake, By some strike of good luck, at 3pm, two and a half hours before the ceremony, the rain stopped and bright sun appeared out of nowhere, enough to dry the ground and still hold the ceremony outside.

Immaculate, manicured gardens surrounded the villa, both the gardens and the  villa situated right next to the lakefront.  Simple and elegant, hundreds of rose petals created the trail to the natural tree/flower-formed gazebo where the bride and groom exchanged their vows. A harpist played romantic music.

The ceremony was short and sweet, and shortly after we made our way towards the villa where the cocktail reception started. A mouth-watering food selection,  one table was filled with Italian meats and another table filled with Italian cheeses – more parmigiano reggiano than I’ve ever seen in one place!  Outside, there was another station where a chef prepared fried zucchini and other Italian vegetables.

An hour or so later (and for me a tough realization that I should probably have enjoyed a few less Italian meats!), dinner commenced.  Two separate pasta courses of tagliatelle with lobster, risotto with scallops were served, and a third course of filet mignon.  Dinner service ended with an elegant wedding cake and a selection of candies. Immediately after the dessert, the dancing started in a separate room in the villa that was reserved for the DJ and all the strobe lights.  All in all, a beautiful wedding ceremony and reception. No detail was spared and it was lovely to be there as a guest!

Como-Brunate Funicular

Don’t miss a trip up the Como-Brunate funicular if you’re visiting the Lake Como area!! From the town of Como, we arrived at the funicular and hurried on to see the views from the top.

The funicular journey is less than ten minutes to the town of Brunate and the cost (as of May 2013) was 5.25 euro (or approximately $7) for a return ticket.

Opened in 1894, the funicular was a “symbol of the public transport development in that period, when every centre in the Province was linked with the provincial capital through a series of public transport lines. It was the period of industrial development and the beginning of what would later become “mass tourism”. (see above link)

There have been a number of changes to maintain the funicular in recent years, including as far back as 1911 in which the traction system was changed from steam to electricity.  Regardless, it’s great to see how much it is used and is clearly still an important transport link for the towns. While we were there it appeared to be used by both tourists as well as local residents of Brunate and nearby villages.

At the top, the views are astounding! The town of Como is 1,600 feet below and you can see the town, Lake Como, as well as the surrounding Alps stretching out into the horizon.

Earlier in the day we met a local resident in Como who recommended a place for us to stop for lunch.

Our arrival at 3pm at Trattoria Del Cacciatore was poorly timed and we found out they were closed for their mid-day break.  However, the owner offered to serve us some polenta and beef if we would like to stay and have lunch.

After we were served, the family all sat outside on the other side of the garden and ate together before they resumed their dinner service.

We had the restaurant to ourselves as we sipped on wine, ate polenta and enjoyed the great sunny afternoon. Italian hospitality at its best.

After lunch, Jim and I strolled around the streets and peaked in through houses’ gated entrances when possible, mesmerized by the steepness and the views from each and every area.

An amazing weekend in the Lake Como area, I smiled on the flight back to London as I reflected on our entire experience. Our move back to the U.S. will be here before we know it, and I will definitely miss the opportunities that living in London has provided us –  especially the ability to get to Italy in less than two hours!