Day 14: Spiritual Highs and Cow Pies

Started off with our lovely lakeside table for fresh fruit, yogurt and peach marmalade...pictured below....and eggs, cappuchino, fresh bread and local cheeses ... not pictured...

Then on to the "HIKE".  a one hour drive around to the backside of the mountain that our B and B is on...the drive was difficult, and the maps/road signs were no help.  Peggy and I, by God's grace, made every correct turn and arrived at the high mountain Rifugio to begin our hike:

We were not alone:

we knew to stay away from as..., I mean donkeys, when they're eating, but are cud chewers also a threat???

Thus we began our 2 hour hike from this rifugio to a high cross on top of a mountain...as we walked, we passed WWI fortifications that protected the Italians from invaders...first the English, then the Germans...

For Dan, we got a close up of the sign...

Mostly walking along a high ridge, with death to the left a few feet and destruction to the right a few feet...we persevered and made it to the Cross...I never knew that cows have great balance by the way...

Behind me in the hazy distance is a the town of Bellagio on Lake Como...I'm sitting at the foot of the Cross...and you can imagine the exhilaration from the view and the spiritual joy from the realization that all life should be lived right here... 

Peggy pondering the glory of God's creation...

Not sure if this blog will accept video, but if so...here goes my 30 second clip of the 360 degree panorama from the top...

failed to load...so just imagine a view of the base of the cross, panning to the top with Peggy beside the 30 foot cross and then circling the camera to capture Lake Como, the towns of Menaggio and Bellagio, and then directly below us, the town of Caddenabia where we are staying.  How'd you do on visualization?  If we could walk straight down the hill to our B and B it might take an hour at most.  Meanwhile, the drive all the way around the mountain was the only road to this spot and that took an hour also.

Okay, so one gets hungry on a high mountain excursion.  For those with weak stomachs please pass on to the next section...We drew straws for who would get the liquid from this tasty cake cakes and pie:

Can you tell I drew the small straw, but hey, I got my money's worth :)))  Just kidding.  Wanted you to see some of the dangers along the path.
There were other dangers...for those experienced Gubitz blog readers...you may remember the "Stinging Nettles" saga from a few years ago.  Now we know what they look like and avoided them....for the most part.  Peggy still brushed alongside one accidentally

Our real lunch was back at the Rifugio.  We still can't believe on the top of many of these Italian Alps, there are houses like this for hikers...and if it was just some closed rooms for atmospheric protection...that would make sense...but to have a complete lunch or dinner menu...really???

We ordered the meat and local cheese tray and really enjoyed the local vino rosso as well...
A nice sight were these cows lined up along the next ridge...which my zoom couldn't quite capture...but here they are anyway.

The map of the hike and drive is included for our future reference, but you might enjoy looking at this "carte des sentieres".  The makeshift arrows reflect our start and destination points for the hike portion...

When we returned to our B and B, Paola, our host said we could see the cross from the sidewalk just outside our room...here's what it looks like in the far distance and out of focus:)))

Refreshed from our hike it was time for another themed dinner menu from our expert chef, Ty.  And wouldn't you know as soon as we sat down to dinner, who shows up...yep, again we get to see George Clooney flying his two engine Cessna waving to us as we prepare for dinner

He didn't want the paparazzi to see him, so he chose to wave to us briefly as he passed over our patio's sun screen...very thoughtful of him:)))

Dinner Theme: TOMATO
First we had cherry tomatoes filled with cous cous and other yummies:

Followed by classic bread soup...tomato broth, basil, mint, other stuff and left over bread....

As amazing as this tasted, I would vote that Christine makes it even better than Ty, but don't tell him...
Then a nice veal tenderloin drenched in spicy tomato sauce with killer smashed potato pudding

Our final course was tomato gelato with fresh cream.  delicioso...

We invited a professor to join us for dinner, Doctor Deb,

and she shared her research, which has become my favorite word of the week...epigenetics...the triggering of genetic action based on external stimuli, like stress, lack of sleep, (too much great food?) etc.  So basically I've always had the blogging gene, but it took some encouragement from my friends and family to provide the epigenetic trigger necessary to get me started.  I apologize to some of you who now feel obligated to read these ramblings..but remember, it's not my fault, I'm just a victim too..it's in my epigenetic makeup:)))

Love you all and for now, ciao bella!!!

Day 13: Elva Conquers the Mountain

Yes, this day is mostly about Elva: her perseverance, courage, pain conquering climb to the church of San Martino located on the side of a huge cliff...and reached only after a loooooong walk uphill!

Here's a slightly better view of the church's distance up the side of the cliff.  If you look over Elva's left shoulder, you might see a white dot halfway up the mountain across the lake.  That's the church we climbed up to this morning

This was no small feat.  And when we arrived at the top...Steve started singing Loch Lomond with the Glasgow couple we met at the top.  What a riot!!!

Turns out, I was the only one sweating in our group.  Alyssa and Aimee wore flip flops and skirts just to make me feel even more out of shape!  Kids these days....  Peggy was Elva's hiking coach, and water conservation ranger throughout the hike...she made it up easily and beautifully...

Even though this was the major activity of the day, of course we ran into the rich and famous along the way.  In fact, on this day, we saw none other than the Hollywood icon...that's right...George Clooney!!!!

You may not be able to see him from your angle, but it's clearly him flying this glider plane over the Rifugio Menaggio.  Look closely and you'll see him talking on his cell phone as he glides...that guy is soooo cool!

In the morning, we had to say goodbye to our dear British friends, Simon and Barbara.  They live in the Cotswolds and have been a joy to chat with.

and of course, in the hubbub of hiking, watching 2 soccer games, taking a refreshing dip in Lake Como and water taxiing to Bellagio...we found time for this roasted vegetable "staple"

Brazil was a machine....so far the game I'd like to see would be a Germany vs Brazil...who knows what other skillful soccer teams will show up during the World Cup...but it really is exciting getting to watch it here.  One small example; when we were in the British Pub watching England get smashed...someone broke a glass and the waitress brought out a red card on the guy.  Best and only cheering all game:)))

Today will see more hiking, Villa visiting and all around joyful and precious time with the Gubitz and Burl teams.  love you all ...  ciao bella!

Day 12: Russell...the Survivor Finalist...watching soccer???

Today was a glorious, mellow day as Steve and Elva attended the local Anglican church while Peggy and I talked with our breakfast mates on our private, lakeside patio:

While waiting for the girls....Aimee and Alyssa, we basically spent the day reading and relaxing on said patio...and then we decided to also have lunch here so we could watch both soccer games later in the afternoon.

The lunch menu included a fish pate

next came the lovely canneloni

The main course was a veal medallion...this meal we decided to split so each portion is half the normal meal...even so we had plenty of delicious bites

Dessert was a chocolate and nut concoction...excellent

Finally game time arrived and we went to a local English pub to watch Germany destroy the UK

Then I looked just in front of me, and who was sitting there watching the game???  you tell me...

that's right...Russel the villain from Survivor...of course he had to shave his beard to be incognito...but it was clearly him:)))

We then met the girls, all logistics worked out well...and we watched the 1st half of the Mexico/Argentina game at the pizzeria in Menaggio... Current score is 3-1 Argentina leads...

The day was a needed relaxing extravaganza...feel free to post a comment anytime...tomorrow, Monday, could be another hiking day...we'll see.  Until then ciao bella dear friends!

Day 11...JOHN LOCKE now works at the Rifugio Menaggio!!!

The day was spent primarily climbing to the top of one of the mini alps..to a rest area called the Rifugio Menaggio.  Little did we know when we arrived that we would be served by none other than John Locke...check him out

Steve, Peggy and I took the 4 hour round trip hike during a warm, but not overly hot afternoon on Saturday the 26th.  It was pretty much straight uphill for the first 2 miles, with spectacular views of lake Como around every turn:  By the ay, not to mislead, I must tell you that we drove half the way up the mountain before beginning our trek

Here you can get a sense of the steepness

The views looking down on Menaggio and Bellagio, and the wild flowers along the way made the difficulty bearable, and I might even say, very enjoyable!

Once we arrived at the Rifugio (Refuge), Peg and I had a lovely lunch...while Steve continued the extra 45 minutes straight up to the very peak of Mt. Grona.... it's hard to know which option was more enjoyable

and the lunch...

we did save Steve a sandwich from this prosciutto, salami and cheese plate!

Then before watching the USA lose, (the game started at 8:30 local time), we did enjoy another blow out meal at our hotel on the water of Lake Como...we even brought a bottle of Vino Noceto to share with our new friends at the other tables:  Simon and Barbara from the Cotswolds, Jeff and Alex from London...he's actually from Santa Rosa and was married in England...living in the UK now with his wife, and Andrea and his wife who are from the Aoste Valley in north west Italy, tucked up against the French Alps. The California Sangiovese fared very well against the Chianti's (same grape) of Italy...this was good to know!

Our appetizer tonight, with the theme being "Meat", was marinated quail wings...

followed by meat stuffed ravioli

The best part of the meal was the lamb shank..marinated in cherries:)))

Steve and Elva are awaiting the arrival of Aimee and Alyssa, with good spirits I might add:

A great evening of conversation continued until the game at a local pub..the fact that both the tv and the crowds were small made the pain more bearable....The first 10 minutes of the second half  looked as though we would be unbeatable...until Ghana's defense showed up and our offense ran out of gas.

On Sunday we might head to the oldest Anglican church in Italy...built around 1891.  and then the daughters arrive...and of course England vs Germany.  With so many new English friends around it will be a joy to watch with them.  Oh yeah, we might enjoy Lake Como and take a drive to Switzerland this afternoon...only time and tonight's blog entry will tell...  love and miss you all...if anyone's reading this still??? ciao bella!

Day 10: Mark Groark and Emily Frey are IN THE HOUSE!!!

Peggy and I have returned to Lake Como after 5 years, and perhaps I mentioned that we are staying at the same hotel in the same room as we did back then...and still loving it!

Well, what I didn't tell you is that as we wandered around Bellagio today, who shows up??? that's right : Mark Groark!

This guy said he was from Holland...but we know better...it's Mark incognito in Italy :)))  Marilyn, have you wondered where he's been these last few days???

Then at dinner tonight, if you look closely and double click on this picture, our dinner friends at the next table include none other than our sweet Emily Frey!!!

Dinner was amazing, but before I show some of those food photos..you must know  we enjoyed a day of ferrying around from Caddenabia to Bellagio to Varenna, then Menaggio, then back to our hotel.  Lots of water and a bit of shopping

Steve and Elva amazed us with their intensity and control at the shopping thing.  I think the only thing they actually came away with was a list of 5 things they might want to buy in the future.  That's probably why Steve is smiling so wide...

Dinner on our lake front, Bellagio viewing, gourmet eating patio, started with local fish dunked in oil

There's obviously a better name if found on an American menu, but here...fish dunked in oil seems to work just fine. This was followed by dry peppered fish mixed with black rice.  Since the taste of this was so amazing, I was reminded by Steve to get a picture of it only after 1 grain of the rice remained on the plate.  Enjoy the photo and use your imagination!

Our main course followed...a local fish wrapped in bacon..it too was amazing:

We finished with an apricot strudel

and some house provided grappa...

Some folks actually like grappa...then again some folks like ... well...all kinds of awful stuff:)))

Tomorrow the plan is for Steve, me and Peggy to take a long uphill hike to the Rifugio Menaggio, while Elva reads away on her balcony overlooking Bellagio and George Clooney's summer residence... (to be fair she can see Bellagio but she will be completely overlooking George's place...)

Go USA in soccer and for now, ciao bella!!!!