We had a great night's sleep and woke up to the sounds of chirping birds......quite amazing the chorus they created! There is so much dense landscape, trees, vineyards and planting around the property that this must be the equivalent of a bird sanctuary. We enjoyed a nice breakfast downstairs and went for another walk around the grounds. We had a couple of thoughts about how to spend the day......and ended up deciding to head out to Monte Isola, an island in Lago d'Isola. We could catch a glimpse of it from the hotel. It seemed to rise up out of the water like the peak of a mountain. It was hard to imagine how it was inhabited.
This is also the island that is to be connected to the mainland with the Christo 'Floating Piers' construction, and we heard it was possible to see some of the work in progress .We drove down through the vineyards to the lakeside town of Iseo - a beautiful town with a lakeside walkway as well as a medieval quarter with tiny, winding streets. We walked all through the town before setting out for the little town of Sulzano, where we left the car and boarded to ferry for the island of Monte Iseo. The island is car free - only residents are allowed motorcycles. We saw one 80 years plus couple jump on a motorcycle and speed away!
The island is charming, we walked a very long way - looking for evidence of the Christo installation. We did see the beginnings of the project but it has a very long way to go before completion! We had lunch in a little cafe and returned to the ferry and back to the mainland. Once back at the hotel, Fiske had the luxury of a massage - which was included with the room. Very relaxed, we headed down to dinner in the hotel. The piano player was entertaining Italian children by making balloon sculptures when not playing. They loved it! Just before dinner we had a huge thunderstorm - lightning and thunder and heavy rain. It cleared as we went to dinner and the sunset was amazing in the mountains.
 |
| A fountain at L'Albereta |
 |
| Even the car park was covered in wysteria and jasmine! |
 |
| Wild poppies in the fields approaching Iseo |
 |
| vineyards in Ebrusco |
Town of Iseo
 |
| Although we took the ferry from Sulzano, there were many others that left from Iseo |
 |
| flowers in the waterfront park |
 |
| a swan swimming by |
 |
| not sure what to say here..... |
 |
| sculptural trees just starting to leaf out |
 |
| a green thumb lives here! |
 |
| interior of San Andrea church |
 |
| a little dramatic......but a nice photo! |
 |
| this is more my style.......love this wall! |
 |
| narrow streets |
 |
| Piazza Garibaldi |
 |
| more of the piazza.....two connected spaces with lots of cafe life |
 |
| nice and colorful |
 |
| some kind of civil workforce gathering |
 |
| bikes, boats and no cars! |
Monte Isola
 |
| getting on the ferry |
 |
| amazing view of Peschiera during ride |
 |
| closer view....you can see the beginning of the Christo piers in white |
 |
| Christo poster |
 |
| Christo pier construction.......only about a mile to go by June 16th! |
 |
| no cars on the island |
 |
| a lot of landscape mixed in with the residential buildings outside Peschiera |
 |
| a local pre-school |
 |
| this is amazing......healthy trees growing in water |
 |
| w wall of flowers |
 |
| elderly couple on moped |
 |
| we imagined these were American tourists dressed out in their new gondolier outfits! Help! |
 |
| relaxing with a great lunch lakeside |
Back in Ebrusco
 |
| embarrassed to say I had two treatments in the Wellness Center........toxins are gone! |
 |
| and more toxins are added! We got this from the hotel as we told them our anniversary was our anniversary......soon!! |
 |
| waiting on our balcony for the thunderstorms we could hear in the distance |
 |
| and the rains came |
 |
| and then left an hour later |
 |
| how often are your stairs lit like this! |
 |
| quite amazing |
 |
| another view as the sun set |
 |
| for those who enjoy grappa (as I do) this is an amazing grappa bar! |
Hopefully, the video below will copy into the blog ok. It is quite extraordinary. Our friends Dominique and Stewart were driving from Milan to Venice this evening.......while we were watching the thunderstorm. They were just past Bergamo on the Autostrada highway when an incredible hail storm hit. They made it to Venice ok!
No comments:
Post a Comment