Italy
Case Santa Giulietta

Discover travel destinations of travelers writing a travel journal on FindPenguins.
Travelers at this place
    • Day 4

      Day 4 - Quaint Village Utopia

      August 7, 2020 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

      Woke up to the news that Belgium was now on the UK’s quarantine list. We made the right choice in deciding against visiting Ypres & Waterloo. Not so clever was the news that France has suffered a major surge in Covid cases, I just hope this doesn’t affect our entry into Greece!

      Worse news still for Jackie was that for 10 minutes she couldn’t find her hair straighteners & thought she had left them in the last hotel. She was virtually hyperventilating until she eventually found them at the bottom of her rucksack. I’m not exaggerating when I say that I’m sure Jackie would have preferred to have lost her finger that her straighteners!

      With the crisis over, we went to breakfast. Mamma was waiting for us with a table laden with so much delicious plates of food. We weren’t allowed to help ourselves, but instead we pointed to things & Mamma piled our plates up. We started with a savoury plate of frittata, omelette, tomato & mozzarella, ham & cheeses. The 2nd plate of food consisted of sweet dishes including 3 baked peaches topped with amaretto & chocolate, blackcurrant tart, orange tart, cheesecake & assorted pastries. It was absolutely delicious & amongst the best breakfasts we’ve ever had. The son insisted on giving us special attention & on at least 3 occasions he told me I was too slim. Just reporting the facts!

      Feeling a bit sick, we waddled out & back at the room, Jackie changed her finger dressing, whilst I felt a little bit queasy. I managed to photo her wound without actually looking at it.

      We packed up the car, said goodbye to our wonderful hosts who gave us a free bag of hazelnuts. We then set off to visit some villages that they had recommended for us. The first stop was La Morra which was perched atop a hill surrounded by vines with the Alps as a backdrop. The bell tower dating back to the early 1700s soars above the town. We chose to just cruise through the village & photo it from scenic vantage points.

      Next stop was Barolo, which again was surrounded by vineyards & arguably produces the best wines in Italy. I have certainly heard of them. We parked up & took a stroll through the ancient streets to the castle & back. It was relatively quiet, presumably a consequence of Covid, because apparently it is normally heaving with wine tourists.

      We then drove on to Serralunga d’Alba perched upon another hill with it’s own bell tower. We abandoned our car & walked to a lookout point over the surrounding valleys. It was at this point Jackie informed me she was feeling nauseous & could be sick any moment.

      We sorted out a sick bag then headed off to our final stop, Grinzane Cavour, which stood atop another hill, but seemed slightly run down. We drove through then set off for our next overnight stay.

      I should add that this region around Alba is very pleasing on the eye, no, just stunning. It is rolling hills & dipping valleys of vineyards & fields of hazelnut trees. A two or three day trip would do it more justice, particularly when you need to incorporate wine tasting. I also noted that there was a Bar to Bar mountain biking route which would have been right up our street. We could have stayed longer, but the plan is for us to try & get to Greece before they go into lockdown or the borders are closed to us.

      With the SatNav programmed to avoid tolls we headed for Bologna, with windows closed & the aircon on to help Jackie’s nausea, but burning up our fuel! We drove through Asti, famous for it’s Spumante, sparkling sweet, but low alcohol wine. We didn’t stop to buy any.

      Our route then took us through Alessandria, Casteggio, Piacenza, Parma, Modena, skirted around Bologna, then through Madonna to our beautiful B&B for the night. Somewhere along the route we stopped at a McDonald’s for an iced coffee. They didn’t do anything of the sort, so we settled for a milk shake & most importantly Jackie got to use the loo.

      We are staying at B&B H6LE which is situated overlooking a lake on the Casalunga Golf Resort. We were met by Sylvia, the owner who showed us to our ‘exceptional’ room. It has an ultra modern bathroom & the snazziest shower I have ever seen.

      I was keen to go out for a Bolognese (Ragu) based meal as I’ve always said “when in Rome........ Unfortunately, Jackie didn’t fancy anything, so apparently nor did I. Instead we sat on our patio overlooking the lake & made do with peanuts, cheesy watsits, Italian style & our 2 remaining bottles of red.

      During the evening, the lovely Sylvia put her head over the balcony and asked us if we wanted a gin & tonic, but we stupidly declined her offer, because we had already opened our wine. Schoolboy error!

      Medical Update: Jackie changed her bandage & her finger is getting better.

      Song of the Day : C’est La Vie by The Stereophonics.
      Read more

    You might also know this place by the following names:

    Case Santa Giulietta, Q18501299

    Join us:

    FindPenguins for iOSFindPenguins for Android