13 Years Later ...Lake Como!

Seven train rides later from Murren and we made it to the town of Varenna in Lake Como. The last time I was in Italy, it was October 2004 and I was on my first solo trip abroad. Lake Como was on my list but I thought it'd be too romantic of a place to go solo, so I skipped it but it was always on my list of places to come back to. Here we are ...13 years later! We arrived to a sunny and warm picturestic lake. What a world of difference in temperature compared to the Swiss Alps. We booked a newer built apartment that sits above the train station and overlooks the lake. In many ways, I prefer this vs the older rooms in the center of town. It's a bit too crowded for my taste. Lake Como is a place you come for total relaxation. There isn't much to do other than eat ice cream, meals, walk the town's and gardens and spend time with your company.

Since this is a lake of villages, we ventured over to Menaggio on the other side of Varenna and found a town that seems more lived in than Varenna. It has more traffic, hotels seem a bit bigger and the square is right in the water and that's about it for Menaggio. No pretty gardens. The next day was rainy so we ventured out for meals and then cozied up in our apartment. Steve has been deep into his James Bond movies since our visit to the Schilthorn. Our last full day here, the rain lightened up so we ventured to Bellagio, known as the glam gem of Lake Como, to see what that was all about. Bellagio has shops for days compared to its other villages on the lake. The streets are filled with more people and certainly more cars. While walking the shops, Steve asked if he can get a fishing boat. My questions are always 1) where are we putting it? 2) how are we getting it back home? Later in the afternoon, we went back for the fishing boat.


Lake Como is beautiful. I don't know that it's the most beautiful lake in the world as one poster claimed, but it is beautiful, serene and peaceful with some of the largest mansions you'll ever see. 13 years later, definitely worth it!