Italy recap: Argegno and Pigra

For a daytime expedition to two very small villages, this will be rather a long post.  No, not because of all the blah blah blah narrative I usually do.  I have a lot of photos to share in the post.  Get seated, and get ready to scroll.

I've already posted about the Lake Como ferries.  We really should have understood better just how awesome a service they are.  Comfortable, providing scenic travel, a good price.  Our first morning at Filario, we decided at breakfast that we would go somewhere that we could get to by ferry.

Figuring out the schedule took a little doing (no, really - we saw it play out many times at the ferry stops that people did not understand the schedule and sometimes had unrealistic expectations about where the ferry went and when and such), but we settled on crossing over to Argegno and just checking the place out.  Onto the ferry

across the lake,

a few stops and sights along the way,

and then we were there.

Argegno had the benefit of not quite clinging to the side of the low mountains and hills surrounding the lake. 

It was a little more than on street deep, in other words.  Not much more, but a little more.  We wandered through the small centre

and made note of a possible lunch option, then headed over to the gondola to take us up to Pigra.

Pigra is a sweet little village.  Village?  Maybe a hamlet.  Wikipedia tells me that the population in 2004 was 294.  I doubt it's grown any since then, but maybe?  There were a couple of places for tourists up there, but we simply admired the views of the lake below

(the gondola rises over 500m),

walked around the place,

and took a number of photos. 

Notable were the many images devoted to cats - it must be their theme. 

Also notable:  a little public library (we didn't go in). 

Further notable:  seemingly abandoned homes. 

On a lark, we afterwards looked up Pigra real estate, and at least one such building was available at a very low price.  Mind you, another home with outstanding views was available at a not-so-low price.  Oh, and kudos to the person with the anti-fascist sticker on their garage. 

Would that we had that perspective here!

Anyway, we came back down and headed for a late-ish lunch at Bistrò Argegno. 

It was a cool place, like a wine shop

that sold food.  The husband (we guessed) of the owner couple seemed gruff at first, but he did recommend a good wine

and brought out a platter of meats and cheeses that was so generous that we couldn't quite finish it. 

He warmed up, though, when we asked him more about the wines and for a recommendation for a bottle to bring back to sip at the hotel.  His wife was delightful, and we talked with them both about how business had been and the weather and such.  We bought a few other things at the store, including the wine (which we didn't end up sipping and brought home with us instead), and headed back to the village centre.  That was the opportunity for Van to get his gelato on Lake Como, and so we did.  I had walnut flavoured,

and I liked it far more than the intense dark double chocolate that the other two had.

Time, then, to head back across the lake!

After a day's adventure, we ventured only close by for dinner, to the Hotel Helvetia Ristorante and Pizzeria.  A negroni before me,

a shared plate of lake fish small bites,

and a simple and tasty piece of lake fish for dinner. 

Not a fancy meal, no, but everything was prepared well and hit the spot just right!

We had a few more days to go along Lake Como, and we knew - and you have seen - that we would be on those ferries again!

a birthday

I am writing this on the morning of Saturday, August 18.  I have decaf brewed and a piping hot mug of it beside me.  Conrad is still in bed.  It is now exactly three weeks since my 54th.  Long past due for a post, and a long post with a lot of photos to come.  Bear with me!

I woke up before everyone else on that Saturday morning.  In truth, I didn't sleep well that weekend - too much indulgence, maybe the altitude.  The nice thing, though, is that waking up early meant that I had time to myself to wander into downtown Breckenridge,

grab a decaf latte at Starbucks, and then see a little of the place. 

A few photos, some steps, and then it was back to the AirBnB to join the others.  Courtney and Robert were awake when I got back, Conrad needed more time.  That Conrad!

Once everyone was awake, we headed into town, parking near Starbucks so that everyone could grab a coffee.  Food and beverage in our bellies, we headed to the nearby free gondola so that we could head up to the mountain ski resort village and look around. 

That was a cool ride, fairly smooth for someone like me who doesn't like dangling off of a cable. 

Although we could have taken chair lifts higher (and done various activities on the bare slopes), we were already at 10,000 feet above sea level,

and we had a food and wine festival to get to.

The festival was different than I expected.  Not bad different, but different.  I kind of thought there would be chefs and tastings and demonstrations of cooking, but no, none of those.  There was the dinner (and a brunch on Sunday that we skipped) plus a "lounge" with food for the VIP guests (the lounge was the entirety of a restaurant on the plaza).  Otherwise, it was like a farmer's market with nothing cordoned off. 

The wristbands prevented those who hadn't paid for the festival from tasting.  We could wander among the stalls and find things like the hematite bracelet I bought for Conrad or the candles I purchased and still taste wines and more.

The wines were not from single wineries.  In some cases, there were conglomerates that owned wineries worldwide, and so you might have NZ, CA, and Italian wines all at the same stall.  There were also importers and even a wine and spirits store in nearby Frisco represented.  Oh, and spirits producers!  Robert and I especially appreciated that one.  So we arrived for the VIP time, ate some lunch, and got to tasting.  After one pass round, we took a break, then went out for more, though Conrad and Courtney stayed in the coolness of the lounge.  All in all, we were there three hours.  I poured out much of what I tasted, not because it was awful but because there was a lot to taste.  And we drank a lot of water!  There were some good wines

and spirits,

though, and it was nice to try them.  We couldn't purchase liquor at the event, but I found the Breckenridge Gin

at the store in Frisco on the way home and brought it back to California.

Naptime for all,

and then it was the walk into town

for dinner at a place that looked promising.  It featured a raw bar, and I thought that would be welcome after a day of wines and such.  And, indeed, the oysters at The Carlin were excellent

as were the biscuits. 

The rest of the food was fine,

but something clearly happened in the kitchen - we were seated nearby, and it was an open kitchen, so we could watch things going on - that fouled up our entrees and led to quite a delay.  And the inevitable happened - people know they messed up, and they avoid coming to check on us because they don't want to hear questions or complaints.  It was still a nice birthday dinner, but the cooking was unfortunately uneven as was the service.  I'd go back for a martini and oysters, but I might try elsewhere for entrees.  Ah well.

Sunday came, and my birthday was over.  I once again got out on foot without everyone, grabbing my Starbucks, taking a photo or two. 

The drive home

was longer than the drive to Breckenridge due to an accident shutting down the interstate.  A fine day for a drive, but a long drive.  There were very welcome tacos at Pica's for us at the end of that one.

And then it was Monday.  I was 54 and 2 days old, and we were flying home from Denver. 

A super weekend with Courtney and Robert, a terrific birthday.  Now then, what shall I do next year?