I had a long weekend in Italy to do some exploring between Will’s departure home and my Workaway in northern Italy. Late August is when all Italians are on holiday, so a friend recommended I check out the lakes rather than the coast. He also recommended looking into lakes other than Como and Garda, both of which are bigger, more crowded and much more expensive. I took Lonely Planet’s advice and went to Lake Iseo.
I had hopes that being at a lake would be cooler than the 90+ temps predicted all over Italy. Alas, no luck on that one. It was an easy trip from Milan by train to the lake, but when I started by walk to the hotel, the heat hit me hard. Once I checked in, I walked 15 min to rent a bike for my stay. There are bike lanes through much of the town, so I figured I’d get a breeze exploring that way. There are ferries going all over the lake too.
The words inscribed on the stone arch above translate to “this place is none other than the house of God, the gate of Heaven”. It was a hard walk up in high humidity. I loved the stone monuments along the way; they not only gave me inspiration, but a chance to catch my breath.
At last the top was in sight. The tiny churchyard gave amazing views of the lake below, with the humid air fuzzing all the edges. There was also a little cafe (closed) with local artwork adorning the walls.
I got the little bus back down the mountain roads; it was a stinky ride with everyone very sweaty from the hike up. The sky was getting darker and rumbles of thunder could be heard off in the distance as the ferry made its way back to the town of Iseola.
The storm held off until after I landed myself in a restaurant for dinner, so I managed to stay dry. The next day he air was much clearer and hot,, so I got myself another ferry ticket to go all the way north to the last stop at Lovere.
I got a seat at the front of the ferry beside a woman and a man speaking Italian. She turned to ask where I was from, and that began a 2 hour conversation between us. She is an American from Kansas and just arrived the day before with her Italian husband to visit friends. We had a really nice talk about travel, families, and both of us being relatively newly retired. She introduced me to her husband and their friends, and they told me things about the mountains and the lake as we cruised along in the breeze. When we went our separate ways in Lovere, she gave me her phone number “ just in case you need anything while you’re over here”. She texted me the next day to invite me to join them for watching a swim race on the lake, but I was already in and out of the heat for the day. One of those magical connections while traveling!
The trip back down the lake was just as lovely. The views were astounding with wind surfers cruising along at high speeds beside and in front of the ferry. At one point, the captain sounded the horn for some of them to move out of the way. It was a really fun to watch some of the families on the ferry; grandparents holding babies, couples of varied ages holding hands, a tour group taking photos as they listened to audio guides by headset. The tourists all around the lake were predominantly Italian families with some German and Spanish as well. I played peekaboo with 2 little German girls on the ferry while they tried to hold their skirts down in the breeze.
The ferry went around Monte Isola for 2 different stops. I love this last glimpse at an olive grove coming down to the water
Lake Iseo was a great place to be on a very hot Italian summer weekend. I left early Monday morning, walking to the train before the heat set in for the day, hoping it would be cooler when I arrived at my Workaway stay at an Italian convent.
Birdgirl’s travels 