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Monday, June 28, 2010

Lago Maggiore -- An Exciting Journey


I've started to collect books about Stresa, buying one or two each time I'm there. My most recent one is called Lago Maggiore -- An Exciting Journey, which was published in 2007 by Nous Publishers. There are many reasons why this book is one of my favorites. Despite its small size (6 3/8 inches sq.) this book has more photographs than most. And because of the vibrancy and clever montaging of many of the photos, the result is a visually consistent and really captivating book. I don't think the photos lose anything due to being smaller in size, in fact I think we benefit from the collections, grouped together by subject. The book's 204 pages are divided into two sections. The first 144 pages are devoted to the photos, with each page having a sharp black background and minimal text. The paper is high-quality, thick and glossy. The photo section is further divided geographically into different regions of the lake. Stresa and its surroundings are given, rightly so, a large portion of these pages. The remainder of the book is dedicated to writings... literary references to Stresa and Lago Maggiore from many famous and historical figures. Text throughout the book is provided in four languages: English, Italian, French, and German, and for this and its low price it makes a nice gift for many international friends, as well as for yourself.

Here are a few photos from Lago Maggiore -- An Exciting Journey. My copies of these pages don't do the actual pages justice at all, but I hope it gives you an idea and entices you to take a better look at the originals.





Nous is a small publishing house, based in Stezzano, Italy, which specializes in books highlighting various locales in northern Italy, with a catalog of 12 books at present covering lakes, alps, and cities.The books are a collaboration between Alex Perathoner, who handles the photography and design, and Giorgio Carradori who is responsible for the text. I bought my copy at Leone Booksellers, on the corner of Piazza Cadorna and via P. Tomaso in Stresa.

Here's another photo book about Stresa:

Stresa -- d'Incanto



Monday, June 21, 2010

Milan's Trams

Orange trams brighten up already colorful streets.

Rumor has it that no map exists for the tram system in the city of Milan. Searching around travel forums shows people asking for said map but no one ever being able to produce one. I don't know if one exists either.... Search 'Milan tram' on Google Maps and you will get this map with the locations of tram stops, but no indication at all where they go.

Tram stops indicated by red dots on Google Maps.
But I do love the Milan tram system, maybe for this seeming chaos and quirkiness. It seems to me there is hardly a street in central Milan where you won't see a tram crossing in front of you at an intersection, hardly a street without a maze of intertwined wires above providing electricity for them. And I love the bright orange trams curving and clanging, passing each other on parallel tracks or backing up behind one another. It takes me back to my childhood somehow, stirring up memories of being led around by my mother, holding tightly to my hand, on New York City subways. Or maybe to Christmas train displays in Manhattan. Seeing trams I feel I'm inside one of those displays. It's probably a combination of those memories, since without having any clue where I am going I'm usually led around by the hand on the Milan trams now too, just as if I were small.

Inside, the trams also evoke a bygone era, again reinforcing this childhood sense in me. They are the old original cars, beautifully maintained with their shapely wooden seats and brass handrails kept polished just by the hundreds of hands holding them. Little white light fixtures hang from the ceiling, and even the modern adverts don't distract too much.

Decor from an earlier time... Wood and brass, opaque glass lighting...

... and carved wooden benches.

The problem does remain though, how to use the system without a map? Mystery answered... This link, for the Azienda Transporti Milanese, otherwise known as the ATM, can help. Here, you can put in a starting and ending location in Milan and receive a map and directions as to which trams, buses, or metro to take. In the section called Route and Timetable finder, on the left, choose a tram route from the drop down menu. The map will then display that tram route, and list below it all the tram stops on said route. Clicking on the name of a specific stop will show you its location on the map, as well as give access to a timetable. There is an option you can click which eliminates the underground, meaning that your trip will be only on trams or buses. And the site is available also in English. I played around and it works quite well. This could turn out to be very useful...  Next time maybe I'll use this system in advance, and bring maps with me into Milan. And who knows? After some time maybe I'll know something the Milanese all seem to know.. just where indeed each of those trams is going!

The ATM also runs two very special restaurant trams through Milan. These lovingly recreated trams serve chef-prepared dinners while taking passengers on a sightseeing tour of Milan by night. Read up here for more of the details and other excursions that ATM offers:


Inside, and outside, the ATM dinner/sightseeing trams.
Here again is the link for the ATM giromilano, the journey planner for Milan: http://www.atm-mi.it/en/Giromilano/Pages/default.aspx

And, some more meanderings around Milan:

Going To Milan From Stresa
The Roof Of Rinascente In Milan
Roof Of Il Duomo di Milano



Thursday, June 17, 2010

Camelia, Rose And Wisteria Win Flower Photo Contest

The judges have made their decision, and the winners have been chosen in the "Stresa and her Lake: Flowering Atmosphere" photo contest. Stresa e il suo lago: atmosfere fiorite, as it is in Italian, was organized by the Turistica Pro Loco di Stresa, in collaboration with the Assessorato al Turismo della Citta' di Stresa, two groups that promote tourism and the city. The goal of the contest was to increase the appreciation of Stresa as a floral community, and to produce more images of the city shown in this way. And no small coincidence that this has happened at the same time as the visit to Stresa by the judges for this year's Entente Florale Competition, when Stresa will be judged against other European cities for the title of most floral city in Europe!

And the winners are:

1st Place: Scorcio serale al profumo di camelia, An Evening View With the Scent of Camelias, photographed by Stefania Rosso of Stresa.




2nd Place: Rosa si nasce, A Rose is Born, photographed by Simone Lamorte of Omegna.



3rd Place: Trionfo di glicine, The Triumph of Wisteria, photographed by Umberto Leoni of Stresa.



From now until June 20, 2010, all of the photographs entered will be on display at Spazio Luparia on via A.M. Bolongaro. 

Other flowery news:

Fior di Gusto -- A Gastronomic Event
Stresa -- Community Of Flowers
La 43rd Annuale Mostra Nazionale della Camelia

Have you taken a special photo of Stresa with flowers as the theme?


Monday, June 14, 2010

Little Gifts


A reader asked me for ideas. She wanted small gifts that she could bring back from Stresa for her friends and family at home. She didn't want the typical tourist souvenirs, and she needed to buy many, so what she was looking for were things that were small enough, light enough, inexpensive enough, and more individual to Stresa than a keyring or t-shirt.

And so I went out into the piazza with this mission in mind. The parameters of my scavenger hunt were these: I wanted to find items that cost no more than a few euro each, about 5 maximum. I wanted something that you could buy many of the same thing that would satisfy a great number of people. And I wanted things that one could pack easily into luggage without having to buy a new carryon bag, and that could be transported without too much worry about breakage or spills. Here are a few of the items I saw that I think fit the bill.


La Cambusa on via Cavour is a treasure trove of goodies. From small bottles of local wines and chianti to all manner of local delicacies, Rosaria has stocked this store with something to please everyone.



I like these soaps that I saw in baskets outside L'Acqua di Stresa shop in Piazza Cadorna. Made locally, and available in several floral scents, including the famous local camelia, these are small, beautifully wrapped, everyone can use them, and they cost only 2.50 euro each.



Just off the Piazza, outside Gastronomia Bianchetti on via Garibaldi, I was drawn to this selection of colorful local pastas. How about combining a bag of pasta with a small bottle of chianti? I've stretched the rules a little bit here... although these bags of pasta are light and inexpensive and not very large I would be concerned however for their safety during transporting them. I wouldn't want to crush them packed in a suitcase, so do take care with that.



Along the same lines I like the idea of small bags of coffee. Some of the cappuccino bars can sell you their own coffee in small paper sacs. Torrefazione Moka, on via A.M. Bolongaro, has a mixture that they call 'Stresa'. "Aromatic," they call it, "In any moment of the day when one wants to gift oneself with a moment of true pleasure," they say, "that is the moment to savour this coffee called Stresa." Look at these gorgeous jars of coffee at Torrefazione Moka. Marcello is usually there and he'll be happy to help you with your selection.



I like this idea of a gift a bit more local, a bit more practical. A gift can be really of a place, not just from a place. And if there are many people that you want to bring back a little piece of Stresa for, these ideas should get you off to a good start!


Saturday, June 12, 2010

The Other Side Of Lake Orta

The view back to Orta, from the Pella side.

Lago d'Orta is another beautiful lake, close to Stresa, with charms of its own. Many of Stresa's tourists include a visit to Orta in their itinerary. Here, guest writer Tony tells us about another way to see Orta:

Orta From The Other Side

Orta San Giulio is a beautiful town, but you must park above and walk down and the walk back to the parking is tiring, and those pesky parking meters consume Euros. So park in Pella, they only charge on the weekends and holidays.

Orta from the other side is more level, and does involve a roundtrip on the lake boat Azalea or Ortensia and you can get off at the island if you wish.

But you were going to take a boat trip anyway.

Lake towns are of course graded by their lungolago, that walking area along the lake. And Pella has finished a modernization of theirs, even if it is interrupted in parts where you need to walk along the road. Look at the lake walk as you leave on the boat and consider walking when you return from Orta. Oh, another plus on Pella’s lungolago, nice new benches for sitting and reading or napping. If you have time before the boat comes into Pella you can have a glass at the bar restaurant near the boat dock. Or if you are not pressed, sit down at Antico Torre where they have their own gelato and make a variety of crepes. Very relaxing.

Pella is mellow compared to Orta’s many shops and hustle and bustle. But Orta has one of the most beautiful lake walks in Italy, just to the north of Hotel San Rocco, and dedicated to those lost on 9-11. It extends all the way around the lake back to the turn to Orta off the main road. And a few benches are complemented by docks out over the water that seem to invite those who wish to sun themselves like lizards. The Orta lungolago walk is a natural digestive for that lunch you had at one of Orta’s many restaurants.

Back in Pella you can walk the road north to Ronco. The road dead ends at Ronco, a small neighborhood town of Pella. There is no bar or market or hotel there, a question you will be asked frequently by those approaching you as you walk back with a thirsty look. Just a very very quiet little lake town. About two kilometers on a road that is above the lake. And there are a few benches down on the lakefront in Ronco.

So consider the road, and water, less traveled the next time you visit Orta.



Antico Torre in Pella.


Pella's lovely lungolago.

Here's the link to the main site for the Lago navigazione d'Orta:
http://www.navigazionelagodorta.it/it/index.php

Also at Orta:

The Sacre Monte Near Stresa



Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Fior Di Gusto -- A Gastronomic Event



In anticipation of the arrival of the European judges from the Entente Florale Europe competition, which we recently wrote about in News Bites, Stresa is presenting a new event, which they are calling Fior di Gusto, Flowers of Taste. From now and through June 10, it is possible to sample special dishes and special menus built around the theme of flowers used in cooking. Twelve different restaurants are participating. Listen to some of these menu selections:

Ristorante Lago Maggiore: Filetto di Maiale alla lavanda con salsa di barbaresco accompagnato da patate al forno, fiori di geranio e bacche di coriandolo. Filet, washed with a salsa of barbaresco, accompanied by oven roasted potatoes, geranium flowers and coriander berries.

Ristorante La Malghera: Pesce persico con nocciole, pistacchi, semi di sesamo e insalata floreale. Perch, prepared with hazelnuts, pistachios, sesame seeds and a floral salad.

Ristorante L'idrovolante: Coregone alle erbe con insalatina di girasole e cerfoglio. Whitefish, prepared with sunflowers and chervil.

Each of the twelve restaurants has prepared a fixed price menu of four dishes built around this theme. If the sample dishes above have failed to attract you take a look at one entire menu, this one from Ristorante La Pescheria:

Zucchini blossoms with a mousse of salmon-colored trout served on velvety tomatoes,

Risotto parmigiano with crispy rose petals,

Lake whitefish with a salsa of radish sprouts,

Panna cotta prepared with marigolds.

This fixed price meal costs 35; the twelve range in price from 25 euro to 50 euro.

If you are in Stresa during this time, I hope you'll make at least one of these meals a part of your stay. 


VIDEO -- I Castelli Di Cannero

Here is a short video that compliments nicely the last post on the 'Castles of Cannero'. The video, filmed from the balcony of a home on the lake, clearly shows just how close these small islands are to the shoreline. It is pretty much exactly from this point that I had my first view of them as well. At the end, the video also treats us to a long parting view looking westward on the lake, on a tranquil and still day.


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