Island Hopping

Our drive from Como to Lake Maggiore was relatively short, so before leaving the shores of Como we had time to visit one last town. Three miles south was the little town of Bellano. Our aim wasn't to see any more of Como itself. Flowing down from the mountains behind the town is a river the Torrente Pioverna. As it reaches the town it enters a narrow gorge called Orrido di Bellano, which is a visually stunning feature of natural geography.

Orrido di Bellano

For a small fee you can pay to enter and walk on walkways that have been anchored into the gorge walls so you are above the waters that flow with incredible speed and force below. A one point a waterfall drops creating a barrage of noise. 

The whole site can be walked around in 15 minutes. 

We stopped on route to recharge the car (just over the Swiss border) and made our way to Baveno, a town on the Western shore of Lake Maggiore. After cloudy skies for a few days we were now seeing temperatures rise. It was 28°c in Baveno and the lake was hazy with the heat. We arrived much too early to check into our next apartment so had a drink in a lakeside cafe when suddenly my phone rang. It was our host, Antonella, who said we could check in if we wanted as she was at the apartment and ready to meet us. We quickly finished our drinks and made our way to our apartment, located a few minutes drive away in a nice residential area.

Antonella was lovely, very friendly, welcoming and fortunately the apartment was blissfully cool. We had views over the mountains from the 1st floor and although it wasn't very modern inside it was spacious. Antonella told us the building stood on land where her parents had lived and there was a black and white photo of them in the living room.

Once we'd settled in we walked back into town. It was about 15 minutes walk to the centre. Lake Maggiore looked beautiful and Baveno was a nice little town. We found the tourist information office and got some useful advice about how to spend our limited time there.

Next to the tourist information office was a beautiful church with cloisters decorated with frescos. 

Baveno Church

Next morning we made our way to the ferry ticket office. There are three islands in Lake Maggiore that are major attractions, Isola Bella, Isola Madre and Isola Pescatori. You can buy an island hopping ticket so it's possible to visit all three in one day. The two largest islands, Bella and Madre have been owned by the Borromeo family for centuries. They are a fabulously wealthy family, starting life as merchants and bankers in the 1300s. Current family members are married into European royalty. 

On Isola Bella previous generations of the Borromeo family spent some of their vast wealth on building terraced gardens and a baroque palace. We headed there first. On a very warm morning the ferry carried us across the lake, taking about 15 minutes. Once on dry land we walked up through some of the gardens and followed a path that took us around most of the island. All around were tropical plants, trees, immaculately kept lawns, statues and water features. It was all very beautiful. Next we made our way to the higher terraces, and there, in front of a giant water feature were two white peacocks. 

Isola Bella Gardens

One of them started to display, putting on quite a show - he must have felt we were worth trying to impress. 

Inside the palace we found a variety of lavishly decorated rooms and heading downstairs a series of grottos filled with collections of puppets and scenery for puppet theatre productions. There was a strange mix of the charming, bizarre and macabre.

All of these islands are quite small so we decided after having a good explore to leave the Isola Bella. We had been tempted to have a coffee in their cafe but the waiter informed us there was a 6 euro cover charge - just for sitting down. As an aside, cover charges are quite normal in Italy and are usually quite modest and replace tippng.  We baulked at paying an extra 6 euros when in some cafes 2 cappicinos would cost less than 5 euros. You can see how the Borromeo family maintain their wealth. 

We made our way to the ferry for the short ride to Isola Pescatori - the Fishermans Island.

Isola Pescatori from Isola Bella

Isola Pescatori isn't owned by the Borromeo family and although quite tiny has a lot of character. From the ferry lanes lead up to a narrow street lined with old houses. At one end of the island is an open space with lovely views of the lake and a tiny harbour where fishermen operate from and mend their nets. At the other end of the island is a church. We decided to have lunch in a restaurant by the church, and timed placing our order when the church bells started to chime. Trying to hear what the waiter was asking and respond was not easy as the bells were deafening.

Isola Pescatori

After lunch we completed our stroll of the island and caught the ferry again. This trip involved going back to our starting point, staying put on the ferry and then being taken to Isola Madre - about 15 minutes away. Isola Madre is also owned by the Borromeo family and like it's near neighbour has beautiful landscaped gardens, terraces and views around Lake Maggiore. It also has a smaller palazzo, but still chock full of expensive decor. There were no puppets in this palazzo but there were dolls - and these were somewhat stange too.

Before leaving Lake Maggiore the following day we made a short trip to the nearby town of Stresa a much more upmarket town and the most popular base for visitors to Lake Maggiore. Arriving early we found a car parking space on the lake shore and walked towards the old town. En route we spotted a pair of turtles sitting on a log in the harbour. 

Family of Great Crested Grebes, Stresa Harbour

One slipped off and disappeared into the water but one remained and was still there when we came back. We also watched a family of Great Crested Grebes. The water was so clear we could watch the mother dive to catch a fish, return to the surface and feed her chick which the father was protecting...and giving it a ride on his back. 

The old town of Stresa was charming. Full of narrow streets with characterful houses. Away from the main shopping area we found a distinctly non touristy bar serving coffees. Locals were coming in for an espresso, which are drunk standing at the bar. We sat down, drinking our cappuccinos, happy to just watch a little bit of ordinary life in a small Italian town, listening to conversations, greetings and the sound of friendship.

Stresa

It was now time to leave Lake Maggiore and make the short drive around the mountain to the final Italian lake of our trip, Lago Di Orta.

Lago Di Orta is a much smaller lake, surrounded by low lush green hills. Part of the lake is in Lombardy and the other part is in Piedmont.The main town, where we had a room for the night, is Orta San Giulio, stuck out on a little promontory about half way along the eastern shore of the lake The town centre is a car free zone, full of narrow lanes and cobbles but for the motorist visiting there are plenty of car parks and a little tourist train on the edge of town. We parked in an underground car park to keep to car cool in the scorching heat and walked down into town, finding a market in full swing. It was by far the most beautiful town we'd seen so far. We were fortunate to find a shady spot for a picnic lunch almost as soon as we entered to old town, with the bonus of a lake view. Across the lake there's a small island, home to a convent, accessed by regular short ferry services. We bookmarked this for later. For now we were content to wander on the cobbles, through the old buildings, into old churches never far from the lake shore, soaking up the atmosphere.

Our hotel was set on a slight hill overlooking the town and lake and early afternoon we were able to check in. Our room had a partial lake view and was blissfully cool. It was a very traditional family run hotel, with a restaurant that had a good menu, at very reasonable prices. We booked a table for later.

The town of Orta San Giulio

After recovering from the heat we walked back into the centre of Orta San Giulio and caught a ferry across to a tiny island, Isola San Giulio - a journey of no more than ten minutes. The island is home to a religious community, and has a basilica parts of which dates back to the 6th century. Signs at the entrance indicated that men wearing shorts should not enter the basilica but I risked eternal damnation by entering to have quick look inside. I wasn't struck by a lightning bolt and did enjoy a brief viewing of the intricately decorated interior.

Isola San Julio

Basilica di San Giulio

Around the island is a single lane, lined with cobbled stones. It's intended to be walked in silence to allow time for reflexion and contemplation. At various points there are wall plaques inscribed with thoughts related to silence or meditation. Mrs B wanted to provide me with a running commentary...but I pointed out that wasn't what was intended. The entire circuit takes no more than 10 minutes and once Mrs B had entered into the spirit of the walk it was very calming. 

Mrs B in a moment of silence...

The ferry took us back across to Orta San Giulio and we walked back to the hotel. All that silent contemplation had given us an appetite.

There can't be many places that are nicer to eat that the terrace of the Hotel Restaurant La Bussola. With beautiful views over the lake, attentive but not intrusive waiters and a talented chef the food served was impeccably good. It was an unfussy but memorable dining experience in a perfect setting and a fitting end to our time in the lakes of northern Italy.

The restaurant view from Hotel La Bussola, Isola San Giulio

We were now coming to the end of our time in Italy but had one more day to enjoy a country that had enchanted both of us. This meant a longish drive to take us into the mountains - to the Aosta valley, in readiness for our crossing of another border. We watched the sun go down turning the sky a pale pink and packed our bags in readiness for an early start.

No-one staying at this hotel leaves hungry. Before setting of we enjoyed the hotel's breakfast ...a veritable feast of fine foods.