I just got back from an awesome trip to Peschiera del Garda and Sirmione: 2 towns on Lake Garda which is just east of Milan. The weather was warm, but cloudy, yet we still had a really fun trip. We left on the 9:30 am boat and caught an 11am train to Peschiera. It only cost 7,90 Euro one way, and it left on time. I love Italian trains. The ride was about 2 hours long, but went by really quickly. Once we arrived, we met up with Ryanne's friend Jenna whose train came in at the exact same time. We took about 3 steps out of the train station and stepped into our hotel, which the website claimed was a 12 minute walk! Maybe if you were on crutches....
We were one of the only people staying in the hotel and the owner seemed to have our papers already and waiting for us. He asked us for our papers, we signed a sheet, and got the hotel key. Once in our rooms it was evident that we had done a good job finding the hotel. Breakfast was included, the beds weren't too uncomfortable, we had a balcony and a clean bathroom full of amenities all for about 27 euro each! We dropped our bags, used the clean bathroom and then asked where the bus was for Sirmione.
The bus driver seemed to find us all quite amusing. We had no idea how much to pay or where to get off, so he kept calling Jenna up to give her our tickets, or a map, and whenever she would turn to come to the back he'd put his hand up and say "No, please. Please." That was about the only English he knew, it was quite comical.
He dropped us off right in front of the castle/fortress, but we decided to grab lunch before touring. We stopped at a little restaurant that was reasonably priced. The waiter standing outside asked Jenna if she was a model, to which she instantly replied, "Si! Tutti." Meaning, yes we all are. He definitely believed her, at least about herself because he started telling the other waiters that she was a model. It was really funny. And the food was really good. And he kept calling me diavoleta (little devil) because I ordered the diovola pizza, which is pepperoni, but means devil. Quite an entertaining experience, and we hadn't even seen anything yet!
After we had lunch we went to the castle and only paid 2 euros for entry since we were students. We went all around taking pictures and climbing to the top of the highest turret. It was annoying though because a lot of the stuff we would've loved to see (like an area that looked like a dungeon) was roped off. But it was still fun exploring it and imagining what a cool fortress it would've been....Uh oh the History dork in me is coming out.
Anyway, next we grabbed the ever-essential gelato and took a stroll by the lake. Eventually dipping out feet in b/c it just looked so alluring. But it was cold. Freezing cold. We took a picture anyways though. Then we wandered on the beach, and saw some guys swimming! We were really confused, until we smelled sulfur and realized the water was steaming. They were in a hot spring right off the lake. I had never seen anything like that before.
We climbed up a ridge just to see what was up there...and stumbled upon the ruins of a Roman Villa. It also only cost 2 euro to enter and was completely worth it. We had a map that was partially in English and explained where all the rooms would've been. They even had a heated pool! One of the most ironic things was that they think it was the house of a poet. A poet made enough money in those days for a villa and a pool and tons of servants! My how times have changed....
After the villa we wandered down through the adorable part of town. It reminded me of Florida or Door County, except in the off season. I can only imagine how cute it is when everything is open and people are strolling hand in hand in their beachware... but it was even quaint in 50some degree cloudy weather with only about 15 or 20 other tourists around.
We caught the last bus back to Peschiera, with the same exact bus driver, who told us that Gardaland (the #4 rated theme park in the world) was open! We were so excited, but then we asked at the hotel, and they said it was closed until April.... which is what we had originally heard.
Once we got back, we flopped down onto our beds in the hotel to decide dinner. None of us had the desire to walk very far, so we just ate at the restaurant in the hotel. Which took our "Day" meal passes. The food was just as good as anywhere, and they let us sit for like 2 hours. It was the perfect end to a great day.
That night we had a little adventure because we realized that one of the light switches turns all the power off, and in the pitch blackness of the room it was a little difficult to find the bagno. Luckily, Megan saved the night with a little travel flashlight. Also, we all seemed to dream that Gardaland was open, which made it even more depressing in the morning when we realized it wasn't. But, alas, we didn't have that much time anyway.
In the morning we got up around 9:30 and grabbed our free breakfast, which was quite impressive and included pastries, yogurt, coffee, juice, cereal, fruit, and biscuits, the last of which we dropped into our bags to enjoy on the train. We had a leisurely meal, as most meals go here... and then ran upstairs and packed up and checked out. Then we realized we still had about 1 and a half hours. So we asked the manager if we could leave our bags with him, and we went for a walk around the lake and some of the old structures in Peschiera.
Peschiera was another town that I could see being twice as fun in the summer. We saw people canoeing and kayaking, as well as innumerable sailboats. Also there is of course Gardaland, which we have all decided we will go to at least once. (Especially when its warm considering it includes a water park...) But even so our walk was a relaxing end to the trip.
We grabbed a 1pm train back to Venice, and Jenna caught a train at the same time to Milan. We waved goodbye and then settled into our seats and talked about next weekend: Milan to visit Jenna. I can't wait!
<3 Allison
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