Prisoner of Hopes

Tag: lake Maggiore

  • Sharing the Love: Travel Goals Italy

    Sharing the Love: Travel Goals Italy

    Sometimes I just enjoy things so much I want to share them. European traditional market days are some of my favorite travel days. Whether it is a giant flea market or small stalls, I am all in! So it was a delight to take my brother and two of my sister in laws on a…

  • Anticipated Arrivals: Travel Goals Italy

    Anticipated Arrivals: Travel Goals Italy

    I love hosting company, especially if the company is family. Today my siblings, minus my youngest brother are coming to join us at our Italian retreat. The house has been cleaned. Groceries are bought and now I wait impatiently for their arrival. I take a walk around our quiet neighborhood waiting for their plane to…

  • Rainy Days Are Still Beautiful: Travel Goals Italy

    Rainy Days Are Still Beautiful: Travel Goals Italy

    Sunny, magical days have to be interrupted occasionally. And so the rain sets in for a multi-day period of grey clouds and damp pavement. Since we are in Italy to experience Italy, we set off for a wet drive around the lake to Cannobio on Lake Maggiore (….not to be confused with Cernobbio on Lake…

  • Stranded: Travel Goals Italy

    Stranded: Travel Goals Italy

    Sometimes things are not as you want them to be. You just have to take a deep breath and deal with them as they are. We wanted to take the ferry to Intra and then on to Isola Madre, the last Borromean island we haven’t visited. It was market day in Intra…and I love market…

  • Gardens and Galleries in Verbania: Travel Goals Italy

    Gardens and Galleries in Verbania: Travel Goals Italy

    Some days just exceed my expectations. I wake up to a beautiful pink sunrise. The rain has washed the earth clean and the birds are singing their thanks. We have no where to be and take our time, lingering over coffee. We drive around the lake to Verbania and the Villa Taranto. I am not…

  • Convents, Cable Cars, and Clothing: Travel Goals Italy

    Convents, Cable Cars, and Clothing: Travel Goals Italy

    The day is overcast as we drive around the lake to Santa Caterina del Sasso. An ancient monastery along Lake Maggiore, Santa Caterina is carved into the rock. It hangs above the lake as if suspended by magic. After parking and trying to decipher signs that seem to suggest the monastery is in two different…

  • Birthday Journey To Locarno: Travel Goals Italy

    Birthday Journey To Locarno: Travel Goals Italy

    Today I turn 58 years old. To celebrate, I am traveling to Locarno Switzerland. It sounded like a great idea, yesterday, when after an “uphill day”, the travel office in Stresa was finally able to book it. After two unsuccessful attempts to purchase seats had failed, finally getting tickets for the rail and ferry Swiss…

  • Lost in Time: Travel Goals Italy

    Lost in Time: Travel Goals Italy

    Isola Pescatori, the island of the fishermen, was meant to be a brief stop. We sought out a quiet restaurant on a remote alley, away from the tourist boat crowds. The waiter took us up flights of stairs and seated us in a window overlooking the rooftops. The pasta was fresh and regional, accompanied by…

  • Isola Bella- The Beautiful Island: Travel Goals Italy

    Isola Bella- The Beautiful Island: Travel Goals Italy

    The day started slowly. We changed plans again and again. Finally we decided to go to Stresa to see if we could find spots on the Centovalli rail and boat excursion to Switzerland. The people at the travel agency were great and so helpful. We laughed and chatted, only to find out that the tracks…

  • Stress Free Stresa: Travel Goals Italy

    Stress Free Stresa: Travel Goals Italy

    It is a rare day that we both awaken at about the same time. In sync, we enjoy coffee. My husband decided to try Italian toasted bread. You buy it prepackaged and already toasted. It is hard as a rock. I took a hard pass. He is desperate because there is no toaster in the…