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The Citta Alta (High Town, which is the original, older part) of Bergamo, as seen from the deck of the bed and breakfast where we stayed. |
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Some beautiful arches in the commercial area of the Citta Bassa (Low City, which is the newer section.) |
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After spending 10 days with Julia, Joe and Thomas, I traveled alone back to Bergamo where I met up with Mary Ann again to go into the Dolomites and do some hiking! Both of us mountain starved (her from flat England and me from desertous SoCal), we were excited to get up into the woods, alpine conditions, and even above the tree line. From Bergamo, where we stayed one night in a shared vacation apartment, we took the train through Brescia, then Verona, and then up to Trento. |
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Frescos on the exterior of a church. |
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The interior of the main cathedral. |
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Gelato, of course! Look at this beautiful, swirly presentation! I think we were the first to be served that day, since all of the mounds were so beautifully coiffed. |
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A lovely slice of pizza with fresh mozzarella, tomato and basil. |
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The restaurant where I ate with our bed and breakfast proprietor, who was kind enough to give me the grand tour or Bergamo when I arrived. |
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The main piazza in Trento, pretty quiet for a Friday night, though it was raining pretty hard the night we arrived. |
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Khalid, a Lybian student at the University of Trento, whom Mary Ann stopped on the street for a restaurant recommendation. He ended up joining us for dinner and being lots of fun, as well as speaking excellent English in addition to fluent Italian!
Khalid texts Mary Ann's husband Matt to assure him she is has arrived safely and is in good hands! We had a good laugh imagining him wondering who the heck's phone his wife had used to send him this message! :-) |
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Madonna Di Campiglio, the heart of the ski resort area also famous for its many hiking trails in summer. |
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The view from our hotel, looking south. |
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Austrian influences were obvious in the architecture of this area. |
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The lake in Madonna, looking north. |
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A tractor sat in the stream, apparently used to either deposit or collect rocks from the bed. |
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The map of our first day's hike, which went to a series of waterfalls, or the "Alte Cascade". |
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Mary Ann comes up our forested trail in her hiking gear, fleece and rain shell, and hiking poles- what an expert! |
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A small perch overlooking the valley. |
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One of many waterfalls cascading down the mountain. |
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A sliver of the view from our initial climb. |
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The "Refugio" or mountain hostel we reached, not knowing that it was actually open for the season! |
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Overlooking a valley of trees- gotta love that greenery! |
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Right, well-appointed rooms had floral curtains hanging in each window, a detail that I appreciated. Each set had featured a different color/style of flower!
Below, the view from the Refugio's restaurant, where we stopped to wait out a brief rain shower. By the time it was over, the large deck outside was filled with hikers coming back from their trips and Via Ferrate (iron climbing). |
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Mary Ann and I enjoy a little Cafetrinken. |
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Mary Ann at one of many bridges traversing the hill. |
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A pool of clear water from the falls. |
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The Refugio's restaurant. |
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The Refugio's bar, also serving a nice selection of cakes! |
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A grand view of the cascades and bridges from below. |
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Wildflowers and cows grazing in the distance. |
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A skinny stream trickles through the pasture. |
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The map of our Cinque Laghi (5 lakes) hike, a VERY challenging uphill feat linking the bodies of water shown above! What a great workout! |
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I'm letting these photos peak for themselves, since there are so many, mostly landscapes, and I can't quite get them all in order without spending loads of time rearranging them. Enjoy the tranquil beauty of the rocky peaks protruding from behind the wooded hills. We did! |
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On our way out of Madonna, we took the bus directly back to Brescia, during which we basically got a history lesson about the area from an English-speaking Swiss/Italian woman, saw some castles and churches out the windows, then the train the last leg back to Bergamo- oh yeah, and then a bus to the airport, the plane back to London, and a pick-up from Matt to get back to their home for my last night in Europe. Another long day flying back to San Diego the next morning made two full days of travel! Totally worth it! |
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