Nautical Musical Chairs (Boats)

Lake Como has many charming villages dotting its mountain shores, all connected by boats and ferries. Today's plan was scenic village-hopping by boat. This turned out to be more complicated than we expected.

Our first hurdle was that not all boats went to all towns, AND instead of leaving every 20 minutes (as we had expected), the timing varied, with hour-long gaps at mid-day. Charlie had in mind certain points of interest and/or hikes/strolls in different villages. The boat schedule reduced the number of towns to see.

The 2nd hurdle was not unexpected, since the villages are at the base of mountains. From the boat docks, all paths and trails went up steeply through the towns. Walking up through those towns took longer than expected (Charlie had to wait for me while I plodded slowly uphill, stopping often to catch my breath).

Our first town was Bellagio. Turns out the famous Las Vegas hotel was named after this town because the resort's designer loved this town. Like Varenna, Bellagio was built below a medieval fortress, and also has villas owned by the ultra-wealthy, including the Rockefellers. We strolled the harborfront, and visited a lovely church (San Giacomo).

The next (and last town) was Menaggio, where we had a tasty lunch of authentic Italian food, including homeade pasta. We trudged up the steep-stepped lanes to the medieval heart of the town, with its own castle (closed!). We enjoyed the artwork and design of another beautiful medieval church, St. Stefano. Another gorgeous boat ride on the lake and we were back to Varenna.Læs mere