Goodbye to cow bells, hello pizza!

We have had no internet for a couple of days so this will be a combined post.

Thursday 8^th May

We travelled today south and through one mountain range to the town of Brig which is situated on the train line from St Moritz to Zermatt. We had originally planned a route that took us around and through the mountains – about 140K – only to find that the pass over the mountains was still closed till the end of May. The alternatives were a route that took us west through Gstaad and then around, probably about 5 hours, or the much shorter route heading directly south and then put the car on a train that carries your through a tunnel 30K under the mountain. This route was only 80k in total and this was the route we chose.

Here we sit in our car on the train.

The scenery we are leaving behind as we go from the
north side of this mountain range to the south side.

It was quite relaxing, a short drive and then load the car on the train. You then sit in the car, in the dark, and the train rattles its way through the tunnel.

We arrived at our next destination, Brig, by lunchtime and were able to park the car at the hotel and set off on foot to explore the town. The hotel was right opposite the station (a bit noisy) and right near the centre of town. Brig was a small town and had a very relaxed feel about it. They have their own castle but we only took photos from the outside as you can only do guided tours and we weren't there at the right time. I found a wool shop in Brig and was able to get more sock wool so I’ll be well ‘socked’ this winter. For the first time in Switzerland we got a meal for lunch that we thought was good value for the money – salad, pasta and dessert for only 13CHF. It was a beautiful day and as we sat outside and enjoyed our lunch a couple of our friends came to mind who would love to be sitting with us.

One of the beautiful buildings in Brig.
Not sure that it was very old but it looked good.

The receptionist told us that Brig even has it's own castle.
Not a big one she said but they are quite proud of it.

What are you doing hiding under that bush Rob?
An old-fashioned pissoire in working order.

The train that runs from St Moritz to Zermatt
- right outside our hotel.

The mountain view looking out one of our hotel windows in Brig.

We spent the afternoon doing some planning for the next 4 nights and we are back to getting some cheaper accommodation. Switzerland has left a couple of lasting impressions - the amazing scenery and the high cost of living. 

Friday 9^th May

Moving on again we headed into Italy. We travelled from Brig over the Simplon Pass which is apparently open all year round. It is only 2005m where some other passes in Switzerland are much higher. It is quite an impressive piece of road with a lot of tunnels and half tunnels (roofed sections). The climb as we left Brig was quite high and quite quickly. There were some pretty fantastic views back over the town and valley but nowhere to park and get photos. We passed plenty of tour buses headed up over the pass into Switzerland.

Looking back to Brig as we climbed the pass.
There was a lot of roadwork going on so we were able to get a photo
while we were waiting our turn at the lights. 

The top of the Simplon Pass.

Views at the top.

An eagle sits watch.

Just stunning.

The swiss roads were very good but once we crossed into Italy the road coming down the mountain was pretty ordinary, and a lot narrower. Once down the mountain though, it was a motorway most of the way to Varese, where we are camped for 2 nights.

Again we arrived around lunchtime and were able to park the car at the hotel and then take the local bus into the city, where we just wandered around checking out the old part of town and had lunch. The old church in the centre of town was just beautiful inside and very different to any we have seen so far. We have not seen this town mentioned in any of our guide books but we felt that this church is worthy of a visit - a surprise find.

The bell tower in Varese.

The dome inside the church in Varese.
Unfortunately the photos just don't do this church justice.

The altar.

This is the outside of the church
 - it gives no indication of just how beautiful it is inside.

Part of the centre of Varese.

The weather has improved now we are in Italy and there is warmth in the sun. We are about to get the suitcase out that has been carrying all our summer gear around France and northern countries. 

Finding somewhere for dinner is often a challenge so we took the advice from the hotel (where almost no English is spoken) and ate at an Italian restaurant nearby. It was just OK but not for a repeat performance.

Saturday 10^th May

Today we went for a drive to Como and Bellagio. Dora gave us a bum steer in Como and had us in the pedestrian area of town before we realised. A man standing on the corner told us we should do a U turn and head back the way we had come. Only one street but could have been worse. We found a multi level car park nearby so parked the car and walked back to the centre of town. Lots of tour groups in town and a lot more English heard than a lot of other places we have been. Again we were just happy to wander the old part of town and then sit in the sun in the piazza with a coffee and sandwich and watch the world go by. We briefly considered the option of doing a cruise on the lake but decided to head on up to Bellagio which was what we had planned.

Our first views of Lake Como - in the town of Como.

Como.

These swans seemed to be quite happy displaying
 their nesting to all the passing tourists.

The drive to Bellagio – what a nightmare ride. The road is so narrow and the Italians don’t move over or slow down.  Every time there was an approaching vehicle we had to swerve right and all I could see was the walls, buildings and cliff faces we were about to hit. I was a very unhappy camper, and not looking forward to the fact that we had to travel back from Bellagio; a different road but I was not expecting it to be much better. There were probably some pretty spectacular views over the lake but they were all on the other side of the car and I was too nervous to look.

Bellagio though was a very beautiful town right on the edge of Lake Como. Not a lot of parking though so it necessitated a couple of goes around the block before we found someone vacating a park. We had lunch in the town, not at a place right on the edge of the lake where the prices were much higher, but a little place up one of the alleys. Moving away from the main esplanade that runs around the shore, there are stepped alleyways that run straight up hill. We went up and down a couple of those. Shame I am not into shopping because there were some lovely shops to look at. Again there were a lot of tour groups here and a lot of American tourists. Not too sure how the groups get here but I would hate to have passed one of their buses on the road. Maybe they actually come and go on a lake cruise boat.

Looking down one of the alleyways in Bellagio.

Happy to be out shopping with his Dad.

Another of the alleyways
 - lots of little eating places and shops.

Day 2 in Italy - gelati number 2.

Looking north past Bellagio and the lake
 to the mountains in Switzerland.

This might have been the better transport option.

The drive back down the other side of the peninsula was a bit better but still very narrow in places and faced with oncoming traffic that just didn’t move over. The good thing was there were a couple of long tunnels that made the journey seem a bit shorter.

We allowed Dora to lead us back to the hotel and she decided the best route was back through Switzerland – who are we to know? As it turned out it was a better drive than the drive over as the roads in Switzerland are much better and a lot of the trip was on more open road whereas the trip there had been through lots of small villages where the speed didn't get above 50k.

Dinner tonight – well we thought it was just a pizza restaurant but when we walked in the door it was Chinese and pizza. Go figure! Rob had pizza which he says was very nice and I had chinese which was also very nice.

 

This religious procession passed the front of our hotel.
Our hotel was on the main road out of town to Como and it was closed off
for the duration of the procession.
 We don't read Italian terribly well, and are not Catholic,
so we are not sure what this was all about.