p a p e r d o l l

Lake Como was unbelievably beautiful.

Thursday evening, I set off for Paris Bercy, where I took the overnight train with Shumin and Zihua (who’d travelled from Poitiers, where they are studying for the year) to Milan. We arrived at 0540 at Milano Centrale, had breakfast, then boarded the next train for Como. At Como, we used the toilets and marvelled at how one steps on something for water to wash one’s hands and how toilet flushing works on a stepping mechanism too. I thought at the time that it’s just a train/train station thing, but no! Everywhere we went in the following days worked on the same system. The Italians are a hygienic people. In fact, everywhere I went in Italy, it was really clean. I wondered if I’ve just been in dirty Paris too long.

The first sight of Lake Como took our breaths away. It was so beautiful! And it bowled me over with its beauty every time I looked at it for the rest of the weekend.

So! After putting our bags down, we explored Menaggio. First up, pre-lunch cocktails at a bar by the water. Then, La Giara Pizzeria for the most amazing calamari I’d ever had, as well as very yummy pizzas. James joined us halfway through lunch. He’d come from Switzerland, where he’s at a Christian retreat. After that, it was a walk along Lake Como, as well as a further exploration of the town and its cute shops. We also had our first cups of gelati. Thereafter, it was chill-out time at the balcony at the youth hostel. We were joined by William, an Australian on his gap year, who is working for a while at La Primula, where we were staying. We had a leisurely conversation while watching the sun slowly set from the balcony. Dinner was at a restaurant in the square. Food was good and the company made it all the better. That night, we played Megapoly (Italian Monopoly) with William in the dining room of the hostel. Other people were playing other board/card games, and there was good music playing. Atmosphere was friendly.

Early the next morning, I woke up early to watch the sun rise with James. I’d never seen the sun rise so beautifully before. It was nothing short of gorgeous. After breakfast, we went to the square to get gelati from another shop. Then, it was onwards to the pier to take the ferry to Como. The view was particularly amazing because the sky was clouded over and there were “holes” where the sun rays shone through. It was truly magnificent. We had to keep telling ourselves that we were really there seeing what we were seeing.

Como was quite a disappointment - too touristy. The market we’d gone there for was a pasar malam without any charm. Lunch was overcooked and overpriced. It was ridiculous. We finally left it for Bellagio, which was very pretty. We walked the little town and popped into quaint shops. Then, Shumin, James and I sat down at the pier for a little talk while Zihua happily shopped away. Was calming. We returned to Menaggio for dinner at Hotel du Lac, where we had, for starters, a lot of bread soaked in olive oil and balsamic vinegar. And then I got further stuffed on vegetable soup and a fish risotto.

The next day, we checked out of La Primula in the morning. We bid a fond farewell to William, and also to this amazing old lady, Connie, who’s 66 years old, travelling alone and having a marvellous time. She was really sweet, like how she would felt like giving us goodbye hugs.

Anyway, us girls had each brought a backpack and an extra bag, so it wasn’t too bad to lug around after we’d checked out. We decided to go to Varenna to hang out for the day. Zihua decided that she’d much rather set off for Milan to visit the Duomo and walk the streets of the fashion capital and that’s what she did. After we’d sent Zihua off, James, Shumin and I started a non-stop eating/talking afternoon. We first had very good pasta (again after too much bread+olive oil+ balsamic vinegar). Then, we sat ourselves down at a gelato place, where the view was amazing and the air fresh. There, we had an unforgettable afternoon. When does one enjoy the luxury of sharing hopes and dreams in a beautiful setting? We were all very pleased with how we lazed away the afternoon. Dinner was at a casual joint, where James, meat-deprived as he is in Switzerland, devoured a T-bone steak in record time. He then had to take the last ferry back to Menaggio where he was staying for one extra night. Shumin and I took the train to Milano Centrale, where we were to be joined by Zihua. The ticketing machine was out of order and there was no ticketing counter, so we boarded the train ticketless. Being the good girls we were, we walked the whole train to find the conductor to purchase tickets, but to no avail. So we sat on the floor and enjoyed a free train ride! There on the floor, we had a good heart-to-heart, which I guess we’d both not anticipated, but was great. I’ll remember it, my dear(: Thank you.

Some hang-out time with a happy Milan-trotter Zihua at the McDonald’s right outside Milano Centrale, before we it was time to take the night train back to Paris. Arrived in Paris the following morning, and then I had classes that very afternoon\:

Lake Como -the scenery, the air, the food and best of all, the company. It was fabulous. Everyone has to look at all the photos in my Lake Como, Italy set. I love them. An unforgettable weekend.