The small town of Cannobio, where we were based for our holiday on Lago Maggiore, has a population of around 5,100 - probably increasing multiple times during the main tourist season, which was thankfully not in its fullest swing yet last week.
It has the typical layout of a lakefront town with a spacious promenade following the shore line, small port for private boats and yachts, piazza with many narrow cobbled streets and alleyways leading off it, statues and churches.
I took way too many pictures and could have taken even more, practically one every step of the way! These are all from the day of our arrival, Monday afternoon:
Now off to explore the streets leading away from the shore:
Then we found an enchanted palace where I am sure Sleeping Beauty lay behind one of those shutters, maybe in the room with the tiny balcony:
Back to the lake front and along a few more streets before it was time to find a place for dinner and eventually go back to the hotel:
Let me start the posts about last week (our week away in Italy, on the shores of Lago Maggiore) with where we were staying.
The small town of Cannobio is one of the first places you get to when you cross the Swiss-Italian border. Our hotel was situated off the town centre, but still only about a 10-minute-walk from the lake.
Surrounded by a huge and beautifully maintained park (without being over-manicured, if you know what I mean), we had a large room as well as our own little patio, facing east. This meant morning sun and a glimpse of the lake first thing after waking up.
Here are some pictures:
Our patio and the view from it:
Our room was the second one from the entrance, on the ground floor:
In the park:
This way to breakfast:
This is not even the full length of the garden:
The pool - it was too chilly to go for a swim, and only on the day before our departure did we actually see anyone there:
Now that you know the setting, I can introduce you to Cannobio, the lake and the mountains... in my next posts.
Yesterday at precisely 4:00 pm, O.K. stopped the car in front of my house after nearly 5 1/2 hours of driving up from the shores of Lago Maggiore in Northern Italy, where we had spent last week.
You'll get to see many pictures over the next days (and probably weeks, so as not to make each single post too long) of mountains and lake views, of blue skies, green woods and grey stone cottages.
This post is just a short wave to let you all know that I'm back home, and a brief glimpse of what to expect.
The video and panoramic picture are both by O.K. The first was taken on Tuesday on the peak of Monte Giove, at a height of 1,298 m. The second was taken on Saturday on Cima de Morissolo, only slightly higher at 1,311 m. According to our guide book, that peak is the only one that allows a view of almost the entire length of lake (roughly 60 km). Clicking on the picture should enlarge it.
Now I have washing to do and groceries to shop for, and I will be back at the office tomorrow. The memories of this beautiful trip will stay with me for a long time.
I might take a while before catching up with your blogs - I can tell from my dashboard that some of you have been posting almost daily, and I am looking forward to reading it.
In many places in Germany, traditionally a Maypole is set up in time for the 1st of May. That tradition is, I believe, much older than the fact that the 1st of May is a day off (in spite of it being called "Tag der Arbeit", "Day of Work").
Those villages and communities who set up a Maypole usually also have a kind of fête going on for at least on the day itself, sometimes for a whole weekend.
In O.K.'s village, it was a celebration that started on Sunday afternoon with the Maypole and lasted until Monday evening. Of course I had to be there to witness it all! I also helped out a bit, doing a 4-hour-stint along with O.K. and several other people behind the food and drinks counter in the beer tent from 8:00 pm until midnight on the Sunday.
It was all new to me, a bit exciting, and good fun.
Here are the pictures I took of the setting of the Maypole.
Sunday, April 30, just after 3:00 pm - here they come: (Note the low, long white beer tent in the back.)
The village band are gathering in the back. Spectators were lining the main road around the crossing where it all happened.
The tree is brought round the corner to where it is going to be put up.
The men dressed in black and white are carpenters, wearing their traditional uniform.
Metal poles are used to support the big, heavy Maypole with the small tree on top.
It did not look all that heavy to me, but it obviously did take some muscle!
Maybe you can spot the red cable leading from the balcony to the pole. The guys on the balcony were pulling as the guys on the ground were pushing.
Then the pole was up, perfectly straight, displaying the symbols
of the village's various trades and crafts as well as the village crest.
Pink Lady here had been taking photos all the time but was not allowed
near until the pole was securely in place. She had a huge camera and I
took her for someone sent from the local paper, but it turns out she is
the wife or partner of one of the organisers of the whole thing.
It
all took only about 20 minutes. The sun shone, the band played, people
applauded, and afterwards free glasses of wine were handed out, along with the invitation to come over to the beer tent where more drinks, food (but also home-made cake and coffee) was being served.
It could not have been more perfect!
