IT MUST HAVE SNOWED LAST NIGHT. The cars coming towards us had 10 cm of the wihite stuff on their roofs and the roads were slushy in those places shaded from the sun. The firs were draped in ermine, creating a winter wonderland much like those we know and love in Colorado. The temperature climbed into the 40s by the time we reached Lake Como. The road paralleled the lake through a series of long tunnels, affording views of the lake for only a few sunblinding seconds between tunnels. We finally pulled off into Varenna for a better look and decided to stay overnight.
At first glance you might expect to see a sign reading "Closed for the season" or "Welcome to Lake Coma," it's that dead. Auberge Olviedo was one of the few hotels open, and we negotiated greatly reduced rates. The auberge has stood on the lake for more than a century and normally would have been way out of our price range. The only other non-residents I saw arrived on their Ducati and Moto Guzi motorcycles for a chance to rest and sip an espresso.
But Lake Como came to life as we drove this morning on a winding road perched between the cliff face and the lake. Fishermen rowed their boats against the light chop while groups of sailboats clustered together by class, jockeying for position for the start of the race. We even saw a number of intrepid and obviously cold-blooded scuba divers donning dry suits for the cold water. And all the while we passed colorful teams of cyclists, flashing by like flocks of parrots.
If Varenna appeared almost dead, Bellagio was a corpse on this Sunday morning so we continued on through Como to the World Heritage site of Sacri Monte, a series of churches and chapels in the hills, as far as I am concerned, one of the few mistakes UNESCO has made. Wealthy Count Vitaliano Borromeo, who also funded the Duomo in Milan, decided that Italy needed a pilgrimage route like the one in the Holy Land. So he commissioned the building of a series of remote churches and had them decorated by famous artists. I think Italy has enough attractions that can stand on their own historically without contriving a few more. And it isn't as though the country is lacking in World Heritage sites, either. Besides, the ones we visited today weren't even open. We had to peek through the windows.
