Friday, 30 March, 2018
It was Good Friday and it marked only . . .
. . . more days until the
Contreras Reunification!
I decided to cross the border again into the Swiss canton of Ticino to check out a few of the Lake Lugano villages that I saw prominently displayed on postcards the other day.
But first I needed to stop into Venegono Superiore's La Pasticceria di Davide Pisano for a morning pick-me-up.
Great Chocolate Easter Eggs
IF it ever warms up,
I'll try their gelato
It indeed pick-me-up for the 40 minute
drive into the Alps
And it cost a mere 2.40€!
Extremely cheap by Swiss standards as I found out the hard way only two days ago.
A Swiss roundabout that would
appeal to Laurie, Koreen FitzGerald
and Debi Murphy, I suspect
My first Lake Lugano stop was in . . .
BISSONE, SWITZERLAND
A small, picturesque village
on Lake Lugano
A brand new church!
By "brand new" I mean it was built recently, by European standards, in 1784.
Nice view of the Alpine foothills
in the background
It was Good Friday,
let's go inside
A different looking
baptismal font
Bernini influenced columns
A small church with a
GRAND interior
Really GRAND!
Who would have guessed?
At the church's adjoining cemetery
A view of Lake Lugano from
the church . . .
. . . and another
A Grand Tour INDEED!
Trees along the Lakefront Promenade
The Milanese Sforza family crest
Interesting buildings with . . .
. . . this view
Ode to a Washer Woman
Thin lanes next to and behind
the lakefront buildings
They just begged to be explored, so I did!
Lakeside art
A second church
For once I followed my own rules and did not enter a second church today.
Provocative lanes
Indeed I am!
Colorful back alley scene
Gnome Power!
Lots of shade provided
on hot Summer days
Pastel colors for Easter Sunday
The people of Bissone
LOVE their colors
Arcades are a concession to the
wet, cold Winter weather
On a sunny day with Laurie,
this would have been a good spot
for a coffee break
Religious art was . . .
. . . prominently displayed
We have to improve our Camarillo
front doorway's art SOON!
"My address s #18, no, #11,
no I'm not sure, just look for
the sign with the two snakes."
The view out the front door of . . .
. . . this house which . . .
. . . is For Sale!
Watch your step onto that balcony
Wait, what balcony?
Bissone City Hall on the left
Bissone was a pleasant city to visit, I need to return here later this Spring when the weather is more favorable.
Now it was onto . . .
MORCOTE, SWITZERLAND
Smart looking Smart car
Morcote is a warren of
interesting alleyways
Easter weekend
Wine oriented curtains
Cool mailbox
Exploration Lust
Angelic window decorations
Madonna, Child and Angel
Hotel and Church
An honorable looking gentleman
Just another colorful Swiss building
What a door handle!
The Holy Family
A mossy view of Lake Lugano
A lake boat in the distance
Interesting decorative choices
Lunch sounded good until
I saw the prices on the menu
Inviting wine shop
Equally inviting alleyway
I sat here for awhile to write a
few Old School post cards
I am still a big devotee of snail mail.
By the way, the post cards that I sent to family and friends in California and Nevada from Mexico City last August while coaching the Europe Warriors just arrived last week.
Seven months, now that's snail mail!
Again, it is Good Friday
Tribute to the men who worked
fishing Lake Lugano over the years
The interesting, short
Captain's Tower
The tower dates from 1249 A.D., I had to enter.
I like heraldry and on display in the
Captain's Tower were several
local family crests . . .
Ah, the sunny Alps!
Nice look for the Testorelli Family
There is a GREAT story behind
this family crest!
But I have no clue what it is.
Anti-Sforza Family?
A blue Pegasus is
always a good, bold option
Contented milk from contented cows
Which reminds me that I need to find out if there are any of the fascinating Swiss cow fights scheduled in the Ticino canton this Spring.
Swiss cow fighting you ask? Go to this 2012 blog post to check one out:
I guess that Lake Lugano fish
put up quite the struggle
In Italian, Martelli means Hammers
We have got to get this family to sponsor our Hammer-of-the-Game award!
The view out of the
Captain's Tower door
They will re-open when the Sun
comes back out I'm sure
Morcote was also a fun diversion but now it was time to head back to . . .
LUGANO, SWITZERLAND
The arts and crafts shows that were scheduled to start today had peaked my interest when I visited Lugano on Wednesday. Thus the reason for my return visit.
Red canopies like these were all
over the historic area of the city
What's this?
Musicians were sprinkled throughout the pedestrian only streets as well.
I liked them
EXTREMELY tempting!
Who doesn't enjoy a good cannolo on a day like today?
Are those two kids trying to
drink that HUGE beer?
Another, more lively band
Watch out for that guy . . .
. . . in the red coat!
GREAT FUN!
Easter Bunny pie
But not for me!
Looks like a Bishop once lived at
what is now a Coop City Supermarket
Coop City had fantastic, large cheese pretzels on sale at a reasonable price.
For my 1965 high school graduation
my parents gave my an
Omega Seamaster De Ville watch
One of my most precious possessions, I still use it on formal occasions.
GREAT gift!
A Lugano tobacco shop
Expensive violins I suspect
One last view of Lake Lugano before
going home to the Villa Skorpion
Though overcast and threatening all day, it only misted a few times on my walks in Switzerland today.
Of course, all of the Swiss arcades help keep me dry when it did rain a bit harder.
When I got back on Italian soil, I found an interesting link to an Italian TV segment about our Skorpion Flag Football teams.
For some TV coverage of last
Sunday's Flag Tournament click here
It's all about good Public Relations to continue to build this program!
Don't forget the mantra . . .
BEAT THE KNIGHTS!
