Talking about escaping, guess what I
suggested to hubby? If you know anything about me you couldn’t hit it so I
might as well spit it out. I volunteered to skip yet another holiday in
the Mediterranean.
Normally, we would soon be heading for our two-week
spring journey, most likely to Italy. Selling the house in the countryside and
relocating to a town caused some confusion to our travelling practices as hubby wanted
to speed up the process by issuing a rather effective measure, a travel ban.
You may remember we terminated the ban last
autumn and visited our beloved Italy in October. I did manage to publish a
couple of pictorials on our days in Milan (here and here). Now, I am planning to
post a series on the Piedmontese part of our stay as a substitute, although a very
weak one, for a new holiday.
But first, one more post on Lombardy: here are some appetizers I shot in Varese where we stopped for a couple of
hours to have lunch and a walk in the centro
storico, the old town. We never made it to the Sacro Monte di Varese, one of the nine sacred mountains of northern Italy that are on the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites. I am writing this down as a reminder to myself to walk the trail with the 14 chapels leading to the sanctuary should I ever return to the province of Varese. That climb would most likely be even more fascinating than the one I am planning to venture on one day in Bologna (my post here).
I’m not saying there wasn’t a hidden
agenda for next autumn behind my so generously offering to stay home but we do
have a project or two awaiting that should benefit from concentrating on
domestic matters rather than holidaymaking. And the agenda is not that hidden
any longer as I am not at all the plotting kind. Besides, he had figured it out
even before I told him.
Oh Italy beckons...don't you just love the ochres, burnt, orange and different stone mouldings. Such beautiful buildings. Sounds like your Autumn holiday will be worth the wait. How do you travel, by air or overland? B xx
ReplyDeleteFor a short holiday, flying is the only viable option. We generally hire a car to move around at the destination. For a longer stay, driving all the way from home might be possible although it would mean several days in the car and we are finding long stretches of driving increasingly uncomfortable. However, I used to drive to the south of France with my ex-husband and children when they were young for our 4-week annual holiday. He did most of the driving though as he doesn't mind sitting behind the steering wheel for hours and hours.
DeleteWhat a shame you have to forgo your holiday, I'm sure the projects at home will be worth while. Although you don't have the heat the area around where you live looks wonderful! I will enjoy seeing your pictures of Italy and pretending you are there! Sarah x
ReplyDeleteThe kitchen renovation was quite a bit more expensive than we had assumed so I was thinking hubby would appreciate some economising on my part. Going through the photos does help me make believe I am far away for a while every day.
DeleteSometimes you have to delay the gratification don't you, but oh gosh, it is all the sweeter for it when you finally get there!!! Thank goodness you have so many beautiful photographs to share and transport your mind in the meantime!! xx
ReplyDeleteIt does help the pain of staying put quite a lot to have loads of travel photos you can browse on a daily basis.
DeleteGreat photos of a country I love so much. I have been for a few years in Ferrara, in Emilia Romagna and I know Italy very well. A trip in there worths without doubt.
ReplyDeleteOlympia
We love the whole Mediterranean region from Greece and Croatia to France and Spain but we tend to travel to those countries where we can understand at least something based on our knowledge of English and French (+ German and Swedish).
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