Varenna on Lake Como

We decide to start our Thanksgiving day in Varenna with a half-day hike to the village of Bellano.  This hike turns out to be more beautiful than any we did on the Cinque Terra.

As usual, the hike starts with hundreds of steps up, landing us first at Castello di Vizio, built in the late 11th century.

Part of the path up:

We are first greeted by ghostly figures. These figures dissolve in the snow every winter so are re-made every summer with tourists who volunteer to be wrapped in gauze and plaster for an hour:

...and carved wood statues by artist Sergio Pagliai:

The views from up here of Lake Como are spectacular:

Varenna lies right beneath us:

There is a falconry here and a couple of owls.

This is Artu a magnificent Eurasian Eagle Owl.  These birds were all born and raised in captivity:

Harris Hawk:

Peregrine Falcon:

Barn Owl:

This Harris Hawk is named Linda:

We enter the castle via the drawbridge:

This is a permanent exhibit in the castle dedicated to the extinct sea reptile Lariosaurus from the middle Triassic period.  It was about a meter long:

Leaving the castle and going into Vezio we meet up with some young Italian hikers and we share a map and opinions as the directions become confusing here.  A local man points us in the right direction.

We are on what is known as the ancient Wayfarers path, essentially a thin mule trail that winds along the side of a mountain.  It takes us through chestnut woods, olive groves, vineyards, bridges, ruins of old buildings, past a cemetery and a shrine.  It is mostly  lined on one side with a drystone wall:

I'm sitting on a chair along the trail made by the owners of an olive grove above the trail and across from the shrine in the next photo.   

The sign over my right shoulder says in part

 "if you get tired from walking the Wayfarers trail please have a sit on this unique throne we have created for you, rest your bones and while sitting in front of this ancient chapel, pray for this beautiful place and path to remain untouched for more centuries..."

We have a wonderful Thanksgiving lunch in a beachfront restaurant on the lakeshore and buy tickets for what should be a short ferry ride home.  

This lake is shaped like an inverted Y and is very long. 

The ferry doesn't have its first stop as Verena but rather zig-zags across the lake to another community...then another...and another.  

We don't pay much attention, its a beautiful sunny deck.  Feeling a bit uneasy we do a double-check of our ticket and it says Verena, so we relax again, enjoying the warmth and views.  

Then it becomes late afternoon and it's getting chilly.  

We go inside to get a drink and Paul starts asking questions about Varenna.  We were supposed to get off the boat after the first stop and catch a different ferry...which we were never told at the point of ticket purchase.

In the nick of time, the workers get us off at the last possible stop where we can wait an hour and a half to catch a fast ferry home!  We caught the ferry at 4 for what should have been a 15-minute ride and got home at 8:15.  

All turned out well, we enjoyed seeing all the communities along the way and had a great dinner at a pub.  Now we have to decide if we are brave enough to tackle the ferries again tomorrow!

In the morning we get a direct ferry to Bellagio.   WHEW...that was easy.

Bellagio (AKA the Pearl of Lake Como) has very exclusive shops and high-end eateries.  Hotels and rooms for rent by tourists make up most of the town.  We see a few ritzy private villas through locked gates.

Random photos from Bellagio:

This shop sells products made from the wood of olive trees and the woodworking happens right here too:

The Lavender street shop:

Next, we ferry (without mishap) to Menaggio which sits at the mouth of the river Senegra.  It was a walled city, conquered in 196 BC.  Today it's a resort town with a population of 3,300. 

Menaggio has a beautiful, long waterfront promenade:

 It's mid-October and flowers are in full bloom:

Arriving home we stop at one of two very tiny markets that serve this community ... the other market is closed ... and manage to scramble together enough for dinner and breakfast.

Tomorrow we head to Milan.