Walk Like an Italian

The most (and most enjoyable) walking I've ever done was in Italy. Walking there is much more common than here in the States.

In Varenna, my favorite place on Earth, my husband & I would start our morning walking down the side of the mountain from our hotel overlooking Lake Como into the medieval town itself. We would wander to a pasticcerie to buy freshly baked breakfast pastries with real butter and milk. Then we would walk to the same spot to sit and eat this colazione ("first meal") while we watched the sailboats and the ducks.  This is the spot: 

Then we would wander the tiny town for the rest of the day, trying out limited Italian (and the locals trying out limited English), then walking back to the hotel for a nap at some point during the day.

If I had an extra $10 million lying around, I'd love to buy up one of the gorgeous villas on Lake Como, there since Pliny the Elder's days. But I'd also take a tiny, two-bedroom cottage and be very, very happy. But since history is more important  to native Italians, people don't tend to move often; they stay in a house their entire lives, and in the case of the villas, for centuries. And they walk.

(The image contained in this post was taken by one Marco Mayer, and is not copyrighted.)

Comments

[Rob Kistner]

sounds quite alluring, as is the image... ;)

[Tumblewords]

Sounds like a wonderful walk and surely the scenery is spectacular!

[CLM]

I was just in Italy in October. It was fabulous and everyone walks in the cities...Loved it, why can't we do that here?

[Julia]

Lake Como is indeed one of the loveliest spots on an Earth chockablock with lovely spots. When I visited Varenna (sadly, for a few days only), the place from which you took your photo was also one of my favorite places.

Some places in the US are more walk-friendly than others. The Pacific NW is a good place to start. :-)