BLOG

This is the blog of Steve Burkett of Italy, Our Italy

102 Blog Articles...But Who's Counting?

That’s right…102! I had no idea that I had put out over 100 blog articles until I counted them this week. I’ve really been a bit chatty, haven’t I?!

I have enjoyed every minute in the production of these articles, mostly about my favorite place — Italy. ‘Why do you do this?’, you ask. Because I want you to be stimulated through my writing and photos to visit Italy yourself. And, as an added benefit, I get to travel voyeuristically along the way as I write and go through photos from great times gone by.

“I absolutely love doing this, and I certainly hope that you enjoy my blog articles, and that you find them helpful in some way”

Italy is a place with beautiful scenery highlighted by mountains, plains, coastlines and lakes…a prolific history of art and culture (I know that you’ve heard of Michelangelo and the Roman Empire)…vineyards and their wineries producing the world’s best wines, like Brunello…authentic (it has to be, right?) Italian food…and a loving, smiling, happy people.

Today, I thought I would give you of my ‘Top 10’ articles. I’ve categorized them into ‘Visiting a Particular Place’, ‘Experiences We’ve Enjoyed’ {that you would, too), and ‘Helpful Travel Tips”. These are my favorites because of memories of the times and places involved, be they humorous, joy-filled, frustrating, or whatever — or because I felt that they were particularly informative in preparation for your own upcoming Italy trip.

If one of the descriptions catches your eye, go ahead and link to the article so that you can enjoy a small slice of Italy, too.

[OK, I have a confession to make. There are actually 12 articles listed below…I just couldn’t pare it down to 10…sorry about that]

Each listing below has a clickable bolded heading that takes you to the original article.

Visiting A Particular Place

Stay Here, Eat Here, Drink Here: Banfi

A beautiful Tuscan day at the Banfi pool

This article lays out for you the full Banfi experience that you will just have to live through yourself one day. We’ve visited the Castello Banfi twice and found the experience to be absolutely wonderful. The tour of the Banfi winery is outstanding. And then there is the Castello Banfi itself…a must see, as well as a must stay. Dining? Yes, you have your choice of the informal La Taverna, as well as the fabulous La Sala dei Grappoli. The enoteca where you can taste and then purchase wine? The largest and most beautiful we’ve seen — and we’ve seen many. Published on May 24, 2016.

A Visit to Villa Cimbrone

The view along the walk from Ravello to Villa Cimbrone

If you will be visiting the Amalfi coast, with its breathtaking mountainous backdrop, you absolutely need to journey up those mountains to the the town of Ravello. It sits high above the town of Amalfi and has spectacular views from the Belvedere. The gardens are charming and there are several restaurants between the town and the Cimbrone Gardens from which to choose, like our selection, Il Flauto di Pan. Published June 7, 2016.

Renato Ratti Winery

Talk about a fabulous and unique winery and visit thereto! This Piemonte winery has been environmentally inserted into the side of the hill upon which the town of La Mora sits. Gravity provides an energy-saving way to transport the developing wine from vinification to storage. The grape of this Piemonte winery is the Nebbiolo and their top wine is Barolo, of course. Our tasting was of vintage Barolo wines going as far back as 1998, which gave us a personal and up-close education on a wine’s tannin, fruit and color over time. Published September 17, 2019.

Stay Here: Borgo San Felice

There is a beautiful place to stay and eat in the heart of Tuscany, and it is the Borgo San Felice. A friend had stayed here and highly recommended it…we are glad he did! The owners basically purchased a small Tuscan town and converted it into a marvelous resort hotel experience. From the ancient chapel to the modern swimming pool, we enjoyed it all during our two visits there. And the food of their Ristorante Poggio Rosso was delicious, whether at breakfast or dinner. Published January 12, 2016.

Stumbling Upon Something Magnificent

Just what was it that we stumbled upon? It was a church sitting high on a hillside overlooking Lago Lugano, just west of Lago di Como. Oh how dumbstruck we were when we opened the doors of the church of Albogasio Inferiore in the small, lakeside town of Albogasio-oria. They say that one can’t judge a book by its cover, and that goes too for churches. The inside has beautifully painted fresco walls and ceilings, as well as other gorgeous ornamentation. Published July 28, 2015.

Experiences We’ve Enjoyed

One Fine Day

The setting is the Amalfi Coast. The conveyance was a 38’ Itama boat, captained by a friendly Gian-Carlo. The day was wonderful. This is the quintessential way to see the Amalfi Coast — by boat. We cruised in luxury with prosecco in hand. We swam the White and Green Grottos. We dined waterside on the Isle of Capri. And every bit of this day was perfect. Published September 29, 2015.

Enjoying Italy-Bought Wine

It’s strange how certain things can trigger memories of the past. We had that experience one lazy day…and those memories were certainly fond ones. What was it that triggered these great memories? It was wine, of all things. It was a wine that we had tasted at lunch in Radda in Chianti and one that we subsequently purchased at a winery in Tuscany. The setting for this article is our living room…in front of a roaring fire…with good book in one hand and a good wine in the other. Published February 2, 2017.

Wild Goose Chase

I’ve chased a wild goose or two, and I’m sure that you have, too. This incident relates to the day we bought a nice wine, as discussed in the article just above. We were on our way to a highly praised dinner…as praised on Trip Advisor. What we found when we arrived at the very small hilltown of Poggio alla Croce was an unexpected mystery. We had a reservation that I had managed to pull off in Italian…at least I thought I had. Find out what happened and how our evening managed to end. Published February 2, 2016.

Your Romantic Gondola Ride

If you’ve been to Venice and you haven’t ridden in a gondola, then you haven’t really been to Venice. The ubiquitous gondola is the iconic symbol of Venice. Your gondola experience should be a romantic one. This means that there is a certain time for your ride…a time that is best for reasons more than just romance. And, as each time has its place, I give you a suggestion on the best place to start (and end) your ride. Published July 12, 2016.

Helpful Travel Tips

Getting There: Bellagio

Bellagio is undoubtedly the most charming town we have visited, and its important how you get there! It sits on the end of a peninsula on Lake Como. You can auto there, but the road is twisty-turny and you may arrive with a bit of fuzzy brain. You can arrive by train…kind of…at least you will be close, but will require a ferry ride from Varenna. And you can arrive by boat…but not just any boat. You definitely don’t want the hydrofoil. What you want is the slow boat from the town of Como. It’s a slow ride and it is absolutely beautiful. Published August 2, 2016.

Another Way Into Italy

Of course you can fly directly to Italy, but there is a way that you might find to be a lot more fun…and relaxing. Why not start your Italy adventure in Switzerland?! You start in Zurich and take one of three trains into Italy. That has been our favorite way because it is a fabulous way to overcome your jet lag…as well as seeing the beautiful Swiss countryside. Published July 30, 2019.

Please, Thank You, and Where's the Bathroom

Don't let the fear of not knowing the Italian language keep you from Italy. Our experience has shown that for most of the places that we go (i.e. not too far off the beaten path), English is well spoken. I do recommend the joy of giving Italian a try, as it’s kind of fun to order a light breakfast by saying, “Pane tostata con burro e marmellata di arance”. But for sure, don’t let the lack of parlando Italiano keep you from Italy. Published August 14, 2016.

Now you know what I know — that being that the above are my favorite article posts. Trust me when I say that it was super difficult to pare them down to those twelve.

I absolutely love doing this, and I certainly hope that you enjoy my blog articles, and that you find them helpful in some way. If a trip to Italy is in your future…and I certainly hope it is…then the article ‘A Trip to Italy in Your Future? Read On!’ is a guide to using the Index of Articles to help you plan for your trip.

And, I really would love to see you there in beautiful Italy! But, in the meantime…

Ciao for now,

Steve

Don’t miss a single article by subscribing here!

Getting There: Bellagio

Index of Blog Articles

Bellagio is worth getting to...but just how should one go about it?

You've no doubt heard of Bellagio. But we are not speaking of the beautiful Bellagio Hotel of Las Vegas, but the real Bellagio...the one from which the hotel was modeled, complete with lake, though no fountain and light show exist at the real Bellagio.

Just one of the many lakeside towns you will see on your slow-boat journey to Bellagio

“The northern-Italian town of Bellagio has been dubbed ‘the most romantic town in Europe’, and we must agree. What a marvelous setting!”

Lake Como and Bellagio

Bellagio sits on an interesting point in the lake district, about 45 miles north of Milan. What is interesting about Bellagio's location is the spit of land on which it is located on Lago di Como (Lake Como).

As you can see on this map, the lake is said to be shaped like a running person, with Bellagio sitting right in the...how can I say this in a decorous way...well OK, the crotch.

There is no direct train service to Bellagio, so one must travel to Bellagio either by boat or auto. And, as one can get around through most of Italy using trains, with no need for renting an automobile, let's assume are not traveling by automobile.

The quickest way to get to Bellagio is by taking the train from Milan to Varenna, and then by a short ferry-boat ride to Bellagio. But be forewarned -- this is not the best way to get to Bellagio, as I will explain below.

The Slow Boat

The most pleasant and most excellent path to Bellagio is by a slow boat from Como. The route of the slow boat takes you to between 10 to 16 stops on your journey and the ride will take between 2 and 2 1/2 hours to complete (the number of stops and journey time depends on your departure time). Be warned that there is a fast boat, which is shown on the boat schedule in red as 'Speed Service' -- don't take this boat unless you are going to be late for a dinner reservation at the Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni (or better yet, change your reservation time). The speed service? It's a hydrofoil boat that takes only 45 minutes to complete its journey.

Since there is a boat that is a good bit faster than the slower boat, why extend your journey on this slow boat? Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I will be using just a few words -- and many pictures -- to explain why you should take the slow boat to Bellagio.

Your Journey Begins

Your journey to the town of Como will start in Milan. For us, we had taken the overnight-sleeper train from Rome to Milan, so we continued our journey to Como early in the morning from Milan. We wanted to catch to 10am boat, so we would arrive in Bellagio just in time for lunch.

These photos were taken as we worked our way through the train yard at Milan.

It's about 20 miles from Como to Bellagio, and our journey should take about 2 1/2 hours.

The lake opens up before you as our Lake Como journey begins

When you get on the boat, take the stairs up to the upper deck for the best views.

This is why you are taking the slow boat -- beautiful town after charming town all along the lake

This boat is similar to the one we are on right now

Lago di Como is surrounded by mountains...and the auto road that ends at Bellagio can be seen cutting across the hill on the right

Another lakeside town you would love to visit, but we won't be stopping here

A lot of mountain, with just a hint of civilization

The clock shows that it is almost 11am; as we left at 10am, we are about an hour into our journey

There is still a lot of lake left on our journey

Many of the villas along the way have gazebo-like embellishments...a quiet place to sit and contemplate the depths of the lake - which happens to be 1,340 feet at its deepest point!

I wish we were on this boat together right this very minute, enjoying the scenery

That one tree looks like they got it at Hobby Lobby...how is it so perfectly shaped?!

This photo and the four below it show the most beautiful house on the lake...idyllic...you've seen it in many movies, like: A Month by the Lake; Star Wars: Attack of the Clones; and Casino Royale. The villa is called Villa del Balbianello. It had fallen into disrepair in the early 1900s and was bought and restored by an American. When the latest owner died in 1988, he left it to the National Trust of Italy. It is open to the public (see their website here).

Looks to be a little after noon...just about 25 minutes more and we will be at Bellagio

Ahhh...bella Bellagio -- we are at the Cadenabia stop and Bellagio is just across the lake and it's next!

As we approach Bellagio, we see one of the auto ferries that travels between Bellagio, Menaggio and Varenna

As we near the dock, we can see our hotel dead center...we are on the top floor of the Metropole, second balcony from the left

And here is our journey's end...and we are just in time for lunch

It's time for a journey's end glass of wine with Scott and Debbie...

...and Ellen has one of her favorite snacks, a grissino, or breadstick

I hope that you are convinced that taking the slow boat to Bellagio is the ultimate journey, one at a pace that gives you time to absorb the charming sights of Lake Como. But, of course, you could have opted for the faster conveyance, below.

The Logistics

Here our friend Scott purchases our tickets as soon as we arrived at the boat dock in Como. It is a good idea to get your tickets early, as the boat does fill up quickly.

Below is the boat schedule, as posted at the ticket office. In the orange box, note the dates for this schedule are between the 1st and 28th of October, 2012. The schedules change drastically after the summer tourist season, so be sure you check online for the correct schedule as you plan your trip.

In the green box is the schedule for the direction of the slow boat from Como to Piona, which is the way we want to go. In the blue box is the yucky hydrofoil Speed Service.

You can see the Navigazione Lago di Como boat schedule on their website. At right is the schedule as of today during the summer of 2016 (but be aware that it is only for service through October 2nd).

So, now you know how to get to Bellagio. Next week, I'll tell you more about the town itself. But trust me, it is a place you will enjoy visiting.

For a related article on an adventure starting in Bellagio, see my article of 07/28/2015 titled 'Stumbling Upon Something Magnificent'.

Ciao for now,

Steve