Wednesday, 4 March, 2020
Mischief was in the air but so still was the Coronavirus scare and with good reason too.
The news reported this morning that 27 more people died on Tuesday of the mysterious virus bringing the Italian death total from the Coronavirus to 79 so far.
Regardless, I planned to break out of the Villa Skorpion II bunker, hop into my car and head on a northeasterly path away from embattled Milano, the Italian Coronavirus epicenter, to the colorful old fishing village of Varenna on Lake Como's Lecco branch.
Before my journey really started, I stopped at the Pasticceria Marabelli for the usual morning sustenance. I was told. that I could not eat my chocolate brioche or drink my cappuccino at the bar as usual, I had to have a seat at a table.
Why? I wondered.
AHA! It was part of our newest
war on the Coronavirus guidelines
Bars can no longer serve anything at the bar itself, patrons are asked to be at least one meter away from the work staff and each other at all times. This new guideline keeps patrons a bit farther apart seated than shoulder to shoulder at the bar.
Makes some sense to me.
On to Varenna . . .
Looks like this pink mountainside
has been quarried over the years
I opted to take the scenic, non-toll roads to Varenna to soak up some of the intriguing Lombardia countryside.
After a refreshing 90 minute drive, I arrived at . . .
. . . Varenna on the shores
of Lake Como looking down
the lake's Lecco branch
The palm trees in these northern, alpine latitudes always amuse me.
Varenna has an Alpini headquarters
The Alpini are the elite, fierce mountain fighting units of the Italian army that patrol the country's northern alpine borders.
They are known to wear stylish green felt hats with a large feather attached like the one in this artsy message board glass. Our Skorpion Defensive Line Coach, Giorgio Nardi, served in the Alpini.
Of course, the Varenna Tourist Information
Center, being a government office, was
closed as part of the Coronavirus battle
Lacking the proper guidance, SOURCE PROGRAMABLE GUIDANCE!, this is what little I knew of Varenna.
The houses here in this old fishing village are brightly colored and there is a fine lakeside promenade with good views of both the lake and the village.
It was time to explore the deserted streets of Varenna.
The way down to
the lakeside promenade
The empty centro of Varenna
As expected, Varenna has
a tall church bell tower
that is part of . . .
. . . the Chiesa di San Giorgio
Varenna's World War I Memorial
LOOK AT THE TIME!
It was time for lunch and I was getting hungry but I decided to enter the Chiesa di San Giorgio first.
I liked the look of its pillars
There were good examples of
religious art throughout the chiesa
More murals
A Toulouse-Lautrec like bishop?
Jesus isn't looking too chipper
A skinny lion?
It was a nice church but it was still lunchtime. I needed to find an open dining spot.
To the far left is the
Albergo-Ristorante-Pizzeria del Sole
It turned out that they served a great mushroom risotto. Add in a half liter of house red wine and my simple but delicious meal was almost complete.
A post lunch macchiato at the del Sole made for the perfect ending to this nice dining experience.
Sated, it was time to walk down
to the ballyhooed lakeside promenade
Good thing that Laurie was not
here to see this store with its
enticing aromas of new leather
This was a perfect spot to sit down
and read my book for 20 minutes
Wait, those people behind me on
the lower right of this picture were
enjoying gelato!
I may have some more exploring to do to be sure.
Kids enjoying the lake during the second
week of the Coronavirus school closures
Cool dormant tree
A little snow on the Alps after
last Monday's storm
I had found the open gelateria on the promenade and walked along the lakeside with a small stracciatella and tiramisu cone to help me digest my recent meal.
A nice shot of Lake Como
through this ancient archway
Varenna's ferry boat dock
The the two ferries that serve Varenna will take you across Lake Como to either Bellagio or Menaggio.
An old arch and a newer building
On the walk back to my car I'd decided that a ferry boat ride to Bellagio was in my immediate future.
Varenna as seen from the ferry
The Chiesa di San Giorgio
bell tower in the distance
The snow covered Alps at the far
northern branch of Lake Como
Bellagio was a ghost town. The restaurants and shops were closed as the Coronavirus scare has caused tourism here to plummet drastically.
Thus, I headed home after a good trip to a small fishing village.
As for that book that I was reading by the Lake Como shore . . .
Reading Is FUNdamental!
We have some perverted people in
Italy according to this fascinating book
Reading continues to be a big part of my own personal Coronavirus guidelines.
No comments:
Post a Comment