A Change in the Weather

Here in Riva, yesterday saw a change in the weather. The rain went away and the clouds started to clear quite early.

We took a leisurely stroll along the the lakeside path to Torbole, taking about an hour. This is a very easy paved walk which takes you past the bathing beaches and the watersports schools which line the path. The area is famous for its wind-surfing and is used for many world class competitions as well as yacht racing.
By the time we reached Torbole the sky was clear and thee temperature had risen into the mid twenties Celcius. We had a drink in a beach cafe before walking back to Riva for lunch at Cristallo's a cafe/bar overlooking the ferry port. They serve the most amazing gelati here.

After all this strenuous activity we had an afternoon siesta before dinner at the hotel, a few games of cards (Ann on as usual) and then an early bed. Wow all this relaxation is so tiring.

Lazy Day

Well the weather report was right. We have had rain most of the day but it has cleared this evening and the temperature is rising. The clouds cleared a little to allow a shaft of sunlight to light up the side of Monte Baldo and a rainbow appeared above the summit. Quite a sight!

So we spent a lazy day just loafing around, eating and drinking. It's a hard life but someone has to do it. The weather report for tomorrow seems more promising so we just might get some walking in.

Arrived in Riva del Garda

We departed from Birmingham airport about half an hour late. We landed at Verona airport in heavy rain and got somewhat wet walking to our coach pick up point. By the time we got to Riva the rain had eased a little. The weather forecast for tomorrow doesn't look too promising either.

We spoke to a couple who are leaving tomorrow after a week's holiday and they told us that it had rained every day. Hopefully we will have better luck. We have been coming here every year since 2003, often twice a year and we have never had bad weather so it will probably change for th better soon.

Off to Italy!!!

Tomorrow we are going to Riva del Garda again. Luckily we have a grown up son who lives with us and looks after the house and dogs while we are away.

We fly into Verona and then take a coach to Riva. The weather report there doesn't look too good for Saturday and Sunday but after that they are promising sunshine and warm weather. Mind you we will enjoy ourselves whatever the weather.

We'll try to keep a daily diary here on our activities but it depends on whether we can get an internet connection or not.

There is a project that is being trialed in Trentino to provide free WiFi. Quite a few of the streets in Riva have been covered already so we are taking our netbook and hoping that we can access the free service. We've been in touch with the providers in Trentino and it looks as though there shouldn't be any problems.

Pisa

A couple of years ago we took a cheap flight from Coventry airport (since closed unfortunately) to Pisa and stayed for a few days at a really basic hotel near the railway station.

Apart from the Leaning Tower, the Cathedral and the Basilica we didn't think that Pisa had an awful lot to offer, a typical university town,  but we found it very convenient for visiting Florence which we loved. We also went to Lucca an old walled town just a short train journey away from Pisa, most attractive place..

We did find two great restaurants in Pisa, courtesy of Virtual Tourist. One was a little upmarket and quite expensive but the food was great. The other one however catered mainly for the locals and students. They sold pizza by the metre as well as typical local dishes. It was very cheap but the food was outstanding. The owner told us they seldom had English visitors and we were treated like royalty. We only had time to go there a couple of times unfortunately.

All in all a wonderful few days break.

Our Second Experience

After our somewhat disappointing introduction to Italy. We decided that it was unfair to base our opinion on one visit to what is after all an industrialised city.

So the year following our Milan trip we went to Riva del Garda at the northern end of Lake Garda. We were knocked out by the beauty of the countryside, the clear blue lake, the imposing mountains to the north, the friendliness of the locals, the local cuisine and the overall cleanliness of the town.

So started our love of everything Italian. Knowing that we would return to this wonderful country as often as possible made me decide to learn the Italian language.

The First Experience

Our first experience of Italy was not of the best.

We had decided to go to the World Dog Show in Milan, quite a few years ago (We are animal crazy as well). We transferred from Malpensa airport to Milan by coach and the route into Milan was uninspiring to say the least, dilapidated buildings, lots of graffiti and deserted factories.

We did manage to find some attractive places in the old city but by and large we didn't like Milan.

What we did like however was the food and the people we met. There was a small restaurant next to our hotel where the owner made us very welcome. The pasta was always freshly made and the main course was always superb. After we had been there a couple of times the owner invited us each night to stay after they closed and drink grappa with him. We seldom went to bed sober.