Friday, 7 February, 2020
After a somewhat hectic week of teaching high school classes again and coaching the Skorpions, I decided that I needed a "Me Day."
Thus, I was off to Switzerland
for the day
I boarded a train in Varese
for the 80 minute ride to . . .
. . . see the famed castles of
Bellinzona, Switzerland
The cool Bellinzona city crest
Neighbor and Skorpion Coach Giorgio Nardi works in Bellinzona and highly recommended my making this journey.
It would be my first journey to this Swiss city.
With three major castles in the city, I found that Bellinzona had a definite medieval feel to it.
This statue greeted me as I
exited the Bellinzona train station
The walk to the quaint
Old Town
A nice archway that
caught my eye
There were lots of modern
art pieces on the streets . . .
. . . like these
But I was here for the castles which
are UNESCO World Heritage Sites
Still there was a lot
of interesting 19th-century
architecture to be found
But still the castles are
what drew my attention
Street art with a castle view
I need to head this way
Bellinzona's Castel Grande
Since I was a bit faint due to lack of proper nutrition, I opted to delay my castle visit until after lunch.
This spot looked good
and it was!
Of course, the prices were about twice as high as they would have been for similar fare in Varese but again, this is Switzerland after all.
Swiss Army knives were
for sale everywhere
Who would have guessed?
The Collegiata di
San Pietro e San Stefano
I was way overdue for a church visit this week.
The view from the Collegiata
back to the piazza full of sun
worshipping Swiss diners
I entered the Collegiata . . .
Nice side altar
Gorgeous old school pulpit
Sad eyes
Golden Tabernacle
Beautiful
A baptismal font perhaps
The Collegiata was quite the church as it turned out.
Pounding the streets again,
I saw this interesting building
Bellinzona's City Hall
A dry fountain
Another shot of the
City Hall on the left
City Hall courtyard
A mural of one of the castles
in the City Hall courtyard
More of the intriguing City Hall
Looks like the Hapsburg Empire
once held sway in Bellinzona
Tribute to those who died
defending Switzerland
Since the Swiss are neutral, this tribute honors Switzerland's warriors who are long dead.
Another piazza, another castle
in the background
It is the Castello di Montebello.
Part of the Castello di Montebello
up close
Same castle, different view
I've always enjoyed these
ancient business signs
Another good one
Stern looking fountain
It was finally time to enter the
Castel Grande
I think that this was my
best photo of the day
A church spied through a bowman's perch.
Inside the Castel Grande's courtyard
The view of the Castello di Montebello
from the Castel Grande
What a fun field trip it must have
been for these students
to a medieval castle!
The view of Bellinzona
from the Castel Grande
This is the Black Tower that
houses an Escape Room at the top
What a fine view during a siege
Another view of Bellinzona
with the 2,727 meter, snow capped Alp,
the Pizzo di Claro o Visagno, in the distance
Another fine Bellinzona edifice
I must say that my day in Bellinzona was well worth it, GREAT city!
But my day was not over yet, I had a dinner date with friends to attend once I returned to the Villa Skorpion II.
I would be joining Santa Barbara and Giorgio Nardi, Enzo Petrillo and their friends Daniela and Stefano for a typical three hour Italian meal.
We drove to this out of the way
eatery about ten minutes north of
the Villa Skorpion II
It was my first visit to the Locanda del Brinsc.
It won't be my last.
Tonight's Special
Cassoeula
Cassoeula is a traditional Winter meal popular with the poor people of the Varese region decades ago.
I was told that a grappa before eating Cassoeula was a MUST.
How could I argue with tradition?
A shared antipasti
was also a MUST!
The Cassoeula was AMAZING!
Made up of cabbage and all sorts of exotic pork meat cuts, I was stuffed by evening's end.
The wine and grappa were flowing and, I believe, improved my command of the Italian language.
The three hours together dining went much too fast as this might have been the funniest group that I have had the pleasure to dine with over my three years in Varese.
Good Times INDEED!
Finally, another poster from the U19 Europe Warriors propaganda machine . . .
War in Turkey usually
has a steep price
What a GREAT day to be alive!
