Saturday we traveled north to Lake Como, which was just a short half hour train ride from Milan. Jess and I were pretty optimistic that we might see George Clooney, as he has a house on the lake, so we decided to hop on a bus going to Bellagio (where George supposedly lives!). The bus ride was over an hour long, but definitley not a waste of time! We drove along winding roads that hugged the curves in the mountain, and we were able to see down to the houses on the shore, up to the houses closer to the top of the mountain, as well as across the lake to the little towns there. Everything was beautiful-the scenery, the lake, the houses. Our bus driver was the friendliest man I've ever met-he knew everyone in all the little towns along the way, and was constantly slowing down to smile and wave at someone he knew, sometimes leaning out the window to finish the conversation as we drove away.
We got off the bus in Bellagio, which is quite possibly the most beautiful town I've ever seen. We walked around in some gardens near the shore of the lake, went down to the shore to touch the water (FREEZING!) and then set off to find some lunch. We wandered throught the tiny, uphill, cobblestone streets until we found a little place called Art in Flower Cafe. We ordered some delicious paninis (mine consisted of artichokes, bacon, and tartar sauce-not a combination I ever thought I would eat, but I thouroughly enjoyed it!) and chatted with our waiter. He kept asking us questions about the states, and did not hesitate to voice his opinions about American politics (the Italians like Obama because he is charming and nice and they don't want any more war, they don't like Hillary because she is mean, though they do like Mr.Clinton because he is nice and likes sex like the Italians do!). After a bit more chatting and eating, we continued to wander around the town, occasionally stopping along the shore to take in the breathtaking scenery (I put some pictures up, but they really don't do it justice). We finally started to get a little cold, so we bussed back down to Como, wandered around there for a bit, and then came back home. It was a fantastic day-the only thing missing was George Clooney, though I might not have appreciated the scenery so much had he been around ;)
