This is beautiful Omegna, a small city just 25 minutes by car from Stresa. Last weekend we came here for the San Vito festival, which takes place every year at the end of August. The highlight is the fireworks exhibition, part of the World Championship of Fireworks, which features a series of fireworks shows in different locations around the area. 

First of all, we somehow scored an amazing parking spot. Not easy at all, since 25,000+ people gather here for this fireworks show, the final in the summer series. We were parked near these boats below. Gorgeous day! As you can see many took advantage of the day to sunbathe, as well as save a spot for the show later. 

We found a great new place to walk, and it's one of those places that makes you ask yourself, "Why didn't we ever stop here before?" We have driven past it probably hundreds of times, on the trip back and forth between Stesa and Verbania. I've even wondered, both silently and aloud, about it, but we still never stopped. Finally, on a somewhat chilly early winter day, we spontaneously decided to park the car, and we ended up exploring the Riserva Naturale Speciale del Fondo Toce for the next couple of hours. This is a very different glimpse of Lago Maggiore, in its natural state, and you can reach and enjoy it easily from Stresa, by using the bus to get here.

The Special Nature Reserve Fondo Toce was established in 1990. It is located on either side of the Toce River, which enters Lago Maggiore at this location. It is a wetland, reed bank area; particularly important for the reproduction of lake fish and migratory birds. You'll find the entrance and parking area if you look carefully as you drive from Stresa toward Verbania. You'll see the sign for the large camping complex, Isolino, on your right, then a large area that looks like a tree farm, and then, a parking area for the reserve. There are signs posted in the parking area, giving an idea of the park you're about to enter.

It's that time of summer again ... the hydrangeas are in full bloom. They are everywhere... In every imaginable hydrangea color and some never imagined.

The charming town of Baceno, nestled in Italian Alps just a stone's throw from Switzerland.

So... a priest, an astronaut, an American and an Italian walk into the woods. Sounds like the classic joke? Well, it's no joke. It happened last weekend, when we went to see the Orridi di Uriezzo. This is a fascinating natural formation dating to the last Ice Age, when glaciers moving through Europe carved great, long lakes (Lago Maggiore among them) and deep, flat mountain valleys. But a certain combination of factors in this location left particularly beautiful results: the now-named Orridi and the Marmite Gigante.

We drove up to Baceno, a pretty Alpine town in Italy near the Swiss border. It took about 40 minutes from Stresa. Parking for the Orridi path is in front of the medieval church; worth peaking into as it was one of those churches that looks so unassuming on the exterior but then opens to glorious treasures inside. To begin the walk, enter the path on the left of the church, down and around the church and into the woods. The ground varies between ancient rock-paving, to dirt, to solid rock that shone in the sunlight like metal.   (continued ...   )

This friend is a fisherman, a painter, a volunteer firefighter on both land and boats. He rows on a crew team and he runs. He has co-written a book about the history of fishing on the lake. He does construction and painting work, often on the Borromean islands. He collects old postcards of the lake... Someday I must tell you about those....

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Stresa is no stranger to rainbows, arcobaleni.  Spotted this one a few days ago, covering the sky from end to end. Bellissimo...

Here's the next collection of photos from the FotograFIAMO contest. These six were taken by three different photographers, but all have a common theme of having a view of the lake from a vantage point high in the mountains. And every one of these vantage points is part of a well-established and easily hiked trail, making these photos hopefully an inspiration to take your camera and do some trekking. (continue for photos ....)

FotografiAMO Neveazzurra!!! That was the name of the photography contest initiated by the Distretto Turistico dei Laghi in late 2011. Within a very short time after the announcement the office was inundated with over 2000 photo entries, submitted by dozens of amateur photographers, of the lake region covered by the Distretto office. Somehow, they managed to select 51 finalists from this bounty, and then 10 winning photographs from those. The choice must have been difficult -- talk about an overabundance of riches!

My friend Filippo at the Distretto office has been so kind to send me over 30 of the finalist and winning images. The ones he sent me, with a few exceptions, focus on the Stresa, Borromeo Gulf, and Mt. Mottarone area. I think I'll post them in a few groups; let's spread out this good thing!  (continue for photos!)

The second part of the Carnevale celebration in Stresa (the first part having been the procession of King Falcett and his court on Sunday) is the traditional meal served in the piazza on the Tuesday called martedi grasso, the day we call Mardi Gras. This Tuesday was a gloriously warm early spring day, which brought even more people outside to enjoy the festivity. In earlier times, the ragu prepared on this day would have been a tapelucco, which is a ragu prepared with donkey meat. It had been on the schedule of events for today, and I will admit a bit of disappointment that ultimately it was not offered. I had been curious to try this. However, the menu, shown above, was traditional, warm, and very filling nonetheless. 

Although inside with windows closed, I heard the marching beat of the drums coming closer with each step. That's when I remembered, "Ah! It's Carnevale oggi, today!" So I rushed outside and followed the sound to the lakefront, luckily arriving in advance of the slow-moving procession. A good portion of the parking lot in front of the Stresa Imbarcadero had been kept empty for the ensuing show. Leading the parade were King Falcett and his queen, being chauffered in great style in a historic automobile very reminiscent of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, just without the wings.

Giancarlo Parazzoli is official photographer for the Distretto Turistico dei Laghi. Many of their promotional materials feature his gorgeous works. Here I share with you some photos he has just taken around the lake... as you can see, spring has truly and colorfully arrived.

We are accustomed to seeing the gardens on Isola Bella in all their spring and summer splendor; like when we recently looked at the Giardino d'Amore section of it, with brilliant white peacocks strutting on lush green lawns and an explosion of flowers and colors. But look here... on a gray, damp, foggy day in February the gardens of the Palazzo Borromeo have a different kind of beauty... almost ethereal... Without the distraction of blossoms and blooms, other features catch our eye, other secrets wait to be discovered.  Following, thanks to Giampiero Zanzi, the founder of Lo Spirito del Lago art show, is a rare look at these gardens at a time when almost no one gets to see them.

This plate of grilled mixed vegetables was from Caffe Bolongaro, in Stresa, and I ate it while listening to the blues band play. Just the perfect thing for a warm summer evening.

Being summer, many of us eat more lightly than usual.

But of course I eat, so here is a selection of the photos I do have of some of my favorite summer foods and summer eating memories from this August in Stresa:

Illustrating once again the Italian attention to presentation, this beautiful sliced melon and prosecco with fruit juice was from a small restaurant in a parking lot where I waited for my return bus from Lake Orta to Stresa. It came with the nuts and chips, and I paid 8 euro for it all. By the time the bus arrived I was cool and very relaxed.

At a special restaurant we shared the prosecco risotto. It was served with a thin slice of edible gold foil on top. The risotto was creamy and delicious... the restaurant was Trattoria Vigezzina, in Masera.

Ah... Milano!! While eating our way through the city one day (definitely worth another post sometime), we stumbled onto Pescheria Spadari, a famous old seafood shop that, only one day a week, served a quick lunch to customers. All sorts of Milanese packed the small shop, eating fritto misto, mixed fried seafood, from cone-shaped paper cups, while leaning on the tall counters.

This is what I call the 'mountain of meat'... Italians call it affettati, slices. Served as a primo piatto, or as an aperitivo, here we have a selection of meats and salami. The mountain of meat is always a favorite of mine.

A very pretty cold dish, this is an eggplant and ricotta lasagna salad that I enjoyed for lunch on Ferragosto Sunday.

We didn't have any gold foil, but we did make our own version of prosecco risotto one day. It was every bit as wonderful, and the strawberries, they were better than gold.

Even simply like this, I find that it is always possible to find food that is fresh and delicious. You will too, by being adventurous a bit and trying all. Buon appetito!