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Labor Day weekend in lovely Lesa, Italy on Lake Maggiore… Part four

All too soon, Monday morning arrived and it was time for us to head back to Germany.  After breakfast, we cleaned up the Rose Apartment and I sent a message to the property owner, who came by to pick up the keys and the six euros of tourist taxes we had to pay.  In Lesa, the office of tourism collects one euro per person over age 14 per night.  There are a few other exceptions to this tax, which the owners had posted in the kitchen.  Apparently, Lesa is pretty serious about collecting this tax and will supposedly hunt you down and charge interest if you don’t pay.

It was nice to meet the owner, who advised us that next time we want to visit, we should simply give him a call and bypass Booking.com.  This is not the first time a property owner has told us that.  I guess Booking.com charges a lot of fees for finding guests.  I would definitely not be averse to going back to Lesa if we have the chance.  It’s a nice place to unplug for a few days.  I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily a place to go if you want to stay super busy, but if you’re looking for peace, quiet, good food, and relaxation, it’s not a bad place at all…  and it’s definitely less hectic than tonier Lake Como is.

We got on the road at about 9:30am and reached Unterjettingen by 4:30pm or so…  Here are a few photos I took on the way back.

Here’s a view of where the lake is compared to where Rose Apartment is.  As you can see, it’s only steps away.

Goodbye Italy… until next time!

Some guy was parachuting over the highway.  I was glad when he managed to cross it without landing!

These are pictures of Lake Lugano, in Switzerland.  Lugano is also gorgeous and worth a visit.  There are too many places to see in Europe and not enough holidays!  I had to take these as we were passing through.

A bird’s eye view of Switzerland?

Our drive back was pretty uneventful.  We stopped at a couple of Swiss rest stops for pee breaks.  Word to the wise.  It’s a good idea to have Francs for the rest stops.  Just like in Germany, you have to pay to pee, unless you stop at one of the more rustic (and disgusting) public toilets.  The ones with restaurants and such usually charge.  However, they are generally very clean and well stocked.

Against our better judgment, we stopped at that crappy Burger King again in Altdorf, but this time, Bill got chicken strips and mozzarella bites.  No mayo!  It always amazes me that such a crappy Burger King could be by such beautiful country.  Right after the fast food break, you enter a tunnel and come out in insanely beautiful Sisikon, Switzerland on the shores of Lake Lucerne.  I keep meaning to stop there for a photo break and lunch.  Look at these pictures!  Maybe sometime, we’ll rent a house there and spare ourselves the pain of traffic.  Sisikon is probably around the halfway point to Italy.  I have actually tried to find places near there but so far, I’ve not been lucky.

Anyway… that pretty much does it for this short series on Lesa.  I can’t say it was one of our most exciting road trips, but we did enjoy our too brief time in Italy.  I really would like to go back again.  If anything, this trip reminded me that it’s usually worth it to book one more day than you think you’ll want or need on a long weekend.  I could have used more than two Italian lunches.  Oh well… there’s always next time!

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Labor Day weekend in lovely Lesa, Italy on Lake Maggiore… Part two

Saturday morning, we woke to rain.  I didn’t mind, since we’ve had a pretty dry summer up here in Germany.  I’ve kind of been missing overcast days.  I usually feel more creative when it rains.  I hadn’t seen Bill all week and was kind of looking forward to just hanging out with him.  I was also feeling inspired to do some writing.  Bill went to the market to get provisions for breakfast while I got to work on my main blog.

Italy’s croissants are kind of different.  I don’t even think they call them croissants.  Down there, they’re called cornetti.  The ones Bill got were slightly sweet.  Cornetti look much like croissants do, but aren’t really the same and they are probably the one food I like somewhat less, probably because they contain less butter than typical croissants do.  On the other hand, my love for these traditional rolls go up when they are filled with something.  Last time we visited Italy, Bill found some that were full of custard.  That just made my fat cells sing like it was Christmas time!  Sadly, this time, the cornetti were empty.

My husband is a creature of habit when it comes to a lot of things.  For some reason, when we take these trips, no matter where we are, he gets croissants (or cornetti), eggs, and whatever the local ham and cheese is.  He fries me an egg, scrambles himself one, and serves me orange juice and coffee.  Bill eats the cheese, while I enjoy a little ham.  The dogs beg for a bite.  Then we usually decide what we’re going to do with the day.  On Saturday, due to the rain, we weren’t motivated to hurry.

Ferry stop.

 

A few shots of the tiny downtown…

 

In Lesa, you can pay five euro cents and fill your own bottle with fresh water.  We also noticed a vending machine outside of the local pharmacy, probably stocked with condoms, aspirin, and the like.

Since it was raining and Lesa isn’t exactly a metropolis, we decided our big event of the day would be lunch in “town”, as it were.  The little village of Lesa doesn’t consist of much, but it’s between a couple of larger towns.  For instance, Arona, is a bigger town maybe ten minutes away.  If we’d wanted to, we could have gone there.  But I had seen pictures of Lesa on Google and wanted to see it.  We ended up having lunch at a restaurant called Il Rapanello.  Looking on Trip Advisor, I see this place gets rather mixed reviews.  Many people comment that the food is good, but the service is hit or miss.  When we approached to inquire about lunch, we were told that they only serve fish.  I love fish, so that was fine with me.  We went in and had a seat.

Below are some pictures from our big Saturday lunch… the first decent food I’d had in a week, since I tend to be lazy about cooking when Bill goes away.

The unassuming front of the restaurant.  On nice days, you can cross the street and dine outside by the lake.

 

Obligatory shot of Bill after he chose wine for us.  He had help from the waiter, who also appeared to be the proprietor.  The guy spoke excellent English and warmed up to us after I told him he had served me the best meal I’d had in a long time.  

 

A nice local dry white… 

 

And some homemade focaccia.

 

While we were waiting for our food, I noticed there was a face on the exhaust pipe of the heater.  The waiter told me it was Miles Davis, which I never would have guessed. Obviously, it was done on purpose, but at first I wondered if maybe the face was born out of luck.

 

I was really enjoying the music they were playing in the restaurant.  It started with Dire Straits and proceeded to Santana and then, of all people, John Denver.  Actually, I think they really must have liked Mr. Denver, since they played several songs in a row by him.  I knew Germans are partial to John Denver, but apparently he is missed in Italy, too.  I didn’t mind at all.  I would much rather listen to him than Euro trash dance music that usually plays nowadays.

I ordered the fish of the day, which was “sea bass”, otherwise known as branzino or Wolfbarsch.  It was cooked in cellophane and served with watercress, cherry tomatoes, roasted potatoes, capers, and olives…

Sans plastic…  this was so good!  My tastebuds came alive at the taste of the fresh fish, cooked to perfection and not at all dry.  

Bill had rare tuna served with caramelized onions, salted potatoes, and balsamic vinegar.  He usually doesn’t go for anything with onions, but these were very sweet.  Later, I could still smell the onions, but they were so good it was worth it.

They aren’t lying when they say they only have fish at Il Rapanello.  If you don’t like fish, your best bet is to go somewhere else.  I did spot one couple enjoying mussels and clams served with gnocchi.  You can only get that for two or more people.

We decided to have dessert.  Bill had panna cotta with berry sauce.  It was extremely fresh, like the milk that went to make it had just come from the cow.

I had “chocolate bread”.  That was how the waiter described it.  It was like a bread made of chocolate and served with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce.

Then we had espresso, pour straight from the pot.

 

Total damage for our sumptuous feast was about 80 euros.  Afterwards, we headed to the grocery store to pick up provisions for the evening.

Not a big store, but well stocked with good food and serviced by a friendly staff.

 

When we parked, Bill showed me the “souvenir” he picked up in Italy.  Apparently, he was trying to turn around and had a run in with a cement planter.  Fortunately, our car is almost 13 years old and due to be replaced once Bill gets his next job offer. 

I notice this is a common problem in Italy.  This car was parked next to ours and similarly defiled.

Buy produce or grow your own!

They wrap the bananas at that store…

Mozzarella goes with wine!

And anchovies and sausage do, too.

 

We got back to the Rose Apartment at about 4:00, just in time to feed the boys their dinner.  While they were eating, we got a visit from the Jack Russell terrier next door.  He was friendly, but he got Zane and Arran excited.  I guess there is a small hole in the fence somewhere.  Because the weather didn’t improve, we decided to stay in and watch TV… namely, The Handmaid’s Tale.  I have already seen all of the episodes so far, but Bill hadn’t.  I had talked about it and he was interested… and sure enough, he quickly got hooked.  So we spent a not so peaceful Saturday evening watching a show about a dystopian version of America.  To be honest, as fascinating as that show is, it gives me nightmares.  However, it also inspires me.

Below are a few more pictures of Lesa as it was on Saturday.  We had better weather Sunday.

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Labor Day weekend in lovely Lesa, Italy on Lake Maggiore… Part one

Bill and I usually go somewhere for the long Labor Day weekend, although last year we didn’t do anything because we had a cruise planned for Scotland and Northern Ireland.  This year, we hadn’t really talked too much about it, since Bill had a big business trip to Morocco the week prior.  We also just found out that we might have to move and the need to secure a job and potentially new housing has kind of dominated our thoughts.

I got to thinking about it, though, and decided I did need a short break from Germany.  So, a few weeks ago, I casually asked Bill what he wanted to do for Labor Day.  He said he wouldn’t mind a quick trip, despite having to travel to Africa the week prior.  I had been looking at going to Ticino in southern Switzerland, which is near Lake Lugano, but I knew we’d need to bring our dogs with us and I wasn’t finding any appropriate self-catering properties.

Then I looked at all the places I had saved on Booking.com and most of them were already booked.  Suddenly, I remember that my German friend, Susanne, had recommended Lake Maggiore.  This lake is close to Lake Como, which we’ve visited a couple of times, but was rumored to have a quieter vibe.  Also, although I had been looking at Ticino, Switzerland, when it comes down to it, Italy is much cheaper.  And if you’re going to be that close to Italy, you might as well just go there.  So I searched Lake Maggiore on Booking.com and found the Rose Apartment in Lesa.  Bill flipped a coin; it was between the Czech Republic and Lesa.  Lesa won.

The word “apartment” is kind of a misnomer for this property.  When I think of apartments, I think of small rented quarters sharing walls with other people.  The Rose Apartment is, in fact, a good sized house, complete with a huge fenced in yard.  I noted that it was very close to the lake and the price was right, so I booked it for three nights.  In retrospect, I should have booked it for at least four nights.  Our break in Italy wasn’t long enough.  However, we were in Lesa long enough to get a feel for the low-key town.  I now know that I don’t have much of a reason to go back to Lake Como.  Lake Maggiore is definitely more my style.  It’s less flashy and more homey.

First thing’s first.  How do you pronounce Lesa?

No, it’s not like “Lisa”.  It’s more like lay-zuh.

Bill got home from Morocco late Thursday night.  Friday morning, we considered waiting to pick up the mail before starting our journey south.  Fortunately, I realized that waiting for the post office to open would really put us behind.  We set off from Germany at about 9:30am or so, expecting to arrive in Lesa by 4:00… maybe 5:00 at the latest.

The drive to Italy through Switzerland is very beautiful.  You pass through stunning mountains and lakes that will take your breath away.  I probably should have been enjoying more of the scenery, but I also got to try out the cellular capability on my new iPad.  I signed up for a month of data from GigSky for 50 euros (5 GB).  It worked very well and I only used one gig to and from Italy.  Sometimes I’m surprised I was born in the 70s.  You’d think I never had to live without Internet access.  But for a small country, Switzerland takes a long time to get through and since it’s not in the EU, roaming charges are a bitch.  Gig Sky worked well enough that I’d use it again.

This lake is so beautiful.  We need to stop sometime so I can take proper photos.  We had sun on the way back today and the lake was even more gorgeous.

Sadly, because we had our hoodlum dogs with us, we ended up eating lunch at a Burger King, where we both had sandwiches that were sodden with mayonnaise.  I don’t know why, but fast food restaurants in Germany and Switzerland really overdo the condiments, especially mayo.  Next time, maybe we should pack our own sandwiches.

Way too much mayo!!!

Then… fate conspired to keep us on the road much longer than we originally planned.  First, we hit a ton of traffic in Switzerland near the Gotthard Tunnel.  It took awhile to get through the 16.9 kilometer passage.  Once we were through that, we hit more traffic in Italy.  We got there just as rush hour was starting.

Just over the Italian border.  It was like this the whole way.

And then, we hit a section of the autostrada, really not that far from Lesa, and ended up sitting for in traffic that was pretty much at a standstill.  We were stuck there for well over an hour and, when Bill honked at a young woman who was apparently asleep at the wheel, she flipped him off.  In Italy, it’s not illegal to flip people off like it is here in Germany.  I wouldn’t ordinarily do something like that, even though we were really tired and our tempers were very short.  When you’re sitting in traffic that has come to a standstill after you’ve been driving for hours, you tend to have less patience.  Bill was amused and surprised by her vehement response.

We paid just under three euros in tolls to drive on the autostrada.  Bill remarked that it was very cheap.  I turned to him and said, “You would have wanted to pay more for that experience?”  He had a good laugh at that.  While we were stuck in the Stau, we managed to stop into an Autogrill (Italy’s rest stop chain) and the gas station attendant pointed out that the back wiper on our RAV 4 was slightly cracked.  The attendant offered to replace it for us.  Bill got the sense he might have cracked the wiper himself, looking for extra euros.  We’ve been to Italy enough times that we’re seasoned when it comes to small time scams.  Unfortunately, this was not the only calling card our car brought back from Italy.  More on that in the next post.

Bumper to bumper traffic.  Turned out the holdup was a very bad accident.  My mouth dropped open as we passed what appeared to be an overturned truck.  I’d be surprised if the driver walked away from that with his or her life.

 

First view of the lake.  I was so glad to see it!

 

By the time we got to Lesa, it was about 7:30pm.  Since he and his wife had dinner plans, the host sent his two very beautiful and charming teenaged daughters to give us the keys to the house.  They got to try out their English skills and our dogs, Zane and Arran, got lots of welcoming pats.  I don’t think I could have picked a more dog friendly rental!

Below are some pictures of the inside of the Rose Apartment.

Huge chestnut tree in the yard.  There are swings.

 

Sliding board next to a pavilion where you can grill.

Crib in the master bedroom.

 

Master bed.  Fairly comfortable mattress.

Laundry room in the basement.  There’s a washer and an ironing board.

 

Hall bathroom.

 

Kids’ bedroom has four beds.  There’s also a twin bed in the living room and in the basement.

 

Basement bed.

 

Basement half bathroom.

 

Couches in the living room and another twin bed.

 
 

Nice sized kitchen.  Opens to a lovely terrace with an awning.

We were too tired to go out to eat, so Bill found a local pizzeria and got a margherita pizza and tortellini with sage.  

Then he tried on the hat that was left behind.  I’m not sure the Italian look is for him.

This is a post office we passed in a big town on the way to Lesa.  I thought it was an interesting mix of dramatic art and 60s kitsch.

  

We didn’t stay up long after we had dinner.  The drive down was very exhausting.  I was kind of bummed, since we might have found a nice restaurant if we’d had a little more time on Friday.  Food, wine. and a change of scenery were pretty much what this trip was all about, anyway.

I should mention that the Rose Apartment has old style Italian three pronged L outlets, which means that our regular electronics didn’t fit.  However, the owners did provide a power strip in the kitchen that gave us enough outlets that we could charge up our phones and such.  Also, WiFi worked great, which is more than I can say about our experience in the last Italian rental we stayed in last year.

I will continue this series tomorrow, after I’ve had a good sleep.  The drive back to Germany today wasn’t quite as exhausting or obnoxious, but I could use a drink.

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