Lake Como & Milano

We woke to overcast and some drizzle, but it soon dried up.

 

There is a massive fort on the hill above Briancon.

We had decided after yesterdays issues with the closed passes we would head over the alps to Italy on the toll road to prevent issues. We really wanted to arrive in lake Como early in the day. As soon as we got to near Turin we got off the tolls and that was already about 25 Euros. From here we stayed on the small local roads and arrived to the lake in just over 4 hours.

 

 

 

Your toll pays to go THRU the mountains!

 

Here we had found a small hotel on the lake for a very good price. It was not far from Mr Clooneys. It is off season so the prices are reasonable.

The ferry dock of Urio is right out front and we caught the ferry to Como City.

 

We walked the town and had some Italian ice creams. The ferry back was a bit chilly in the wind at 6 pm. The hotel restraint makes a very good Pizza and you can enjoy a glass of wine with w view of the lake.

 

Our dear friend Wolfgang from Hamburg is headed for 3 weeks of off road riding in Albania and he and our new friend Marcus had driven out of their way to see us for a coffee this morning on the lake!

Walking 2 km to the next village at Moltrasio for the next ferry to Bellagio, which is morenorth and on the opposite side of the lake. Also at the dock were Texans Mark and Kathy, with whom we had a very fun ride up the lake on the “cruise” for 1 hr 45 min. Only in Italy can you get prosecco in a real glass on the ferry!

Chez Clooney

We walked up and down the steep streets of Bellagio, visited the church, and has some really good pasta.

All day we saw “the experience” tours including Bentley, Porsche, and Ferrari. This was a super car traffic jam.

It was raining on and off, but had settled by the time we made it back to Moltrasio. They were kind enough to invite us to their hotel to share some VERY nice champagne and conversation!! We hope to make to San Antonio one day!

 

Today we had just a short 70 km to Milano to meet “the Royals” from Sweden.

We arrived to the apartment near the Duomo ( and a Magnum custom shop across the road) and not 20 minutes later we could here Orvar’s 1200 GS arriving.

We had a few beers while we were waiting for the check in and Orvar took the metro to meet Anne at the central station where she arrived on the bus from the airport. She had to get up very early today and drive 250 km to Oslo to catch her flight here.

The location of the apartment Daniel booked is so awesome we can walk to all the major sights in the centre of the city. The best part however is that it has a washing machine and was soon full of 3 peoples smelly gear. There is also a small square next door where we could park the bikes.

“The Doumo or Milan Cathedral is the cathedral church of Milan, Italy. Dedicated to St Mary of the Nativity, it is the seat of the Archbishop of Milan, currently Cardinal Angelo Scola. The Gothic cathedral took nearly six centuries to complete. The first cathedral, the “new basilica” (basilica nova) dedicated to St Thecla, was completed by 355, but this one was started in 1386. It is the 5 th largest church in the world and the largest in Italy.”

“The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II is one of the world’s oldest shopping malls. Housed within a four-story double arcade in central Milan, the Galleria is named after Vittorio Emanuele II, the first king of the Kingdom of Italy.”

Afternoon coffee Italian style standing at the bar.

 

“Sforza Castle is a castle in Milan, northern Italy. It was built in the 15th century by Francesco Sforza, Duke of Milan, on the remains of a 14th-century fortification.”

 

 

 

We had several days to wander around the city. We visited the Castle and the Duomo of course, but we visited a lot of coffee and ice cream shops too. The orange spritz drink is Apersol and Prosecco and other than the colour is not too bad. The Campari and Prosecco is pretty terrible actually.

Some of the locals singing in the rain?!

The Cathedral for sunrise!