An entry in the TFS Travel Journal
Enjoyed another nice breakfast, as well as a conversation with a couple of honeymooning labor lawyers from Washington, D.C. (He said after making the drive last night, he wanted to just take a nap)
We were supposed to move this morning to the sad-looking Florence Hotel across the street, as the Serbelloni was completely booked, but we learned that a private residence at the hotel had become unexpectedly available and would we like it? It’s part of the health club, a short walk from the main hotel, and is basically a one-bedroom apartment. Not much character, but private, large and quiet. (and 1/2 the price of the room!) We grabbed it.
We then had the smug and snooty concierge make a 1:30 reservation at La Fagurida, since no one there spoke english (imagine!), but they said that 1:00 would be better; we said we’d try. We arrived slightly before 1:00, and were the only patrons besides one man dining alone; no one else ever showed up. The setting was beautiful, on a balcony overlooking the lake with fig trees and flowers surrounding us. It was a family affair, and we were served by the lovely, friendly daughter who spoke no english. The food was ok, the cold meats being good, the pickled fish not, but some good, buttery polenta w/plenty of good local cheese, a good house red wine (served in coffee mugs) and a dessert of creme caramel that was wonderful.
We then drove down to the world-famous Villa D’Este. Quite the lovely grounds and lake-side setting, filled with Americans and Japanese. Their concierge couldn’t have been nicer in helping us to arrange a visit to the Villa Balbienello, which the Serbelloni had wanted to set up privately for us for twice what it ended up costing. We drove back up to the departure dock and boated out to the Villa.
Unquestionably one of the most enchanting places we’ve ever seen or experienced. (Evidently, we’re not alone, as the movie “A Month By The Lake” w/Vanessa Redgrave and Edward Fox was filmed there 2 years ago) Originally built in the 16th century, it was most recently owned by an Italian Count from a fabulously wealthy family who deeded it to the National Trust when he died in 1988.
It’s set on the top of a hill on the tip of a spit of land extending out into the lake, so there are expansive lake and hillside views from literally every window. It’s also not too big, so it feels very liveable. The building is built into the hill, and is a light saffron color, with green leafy vines (very old figs, we learned) forming all sorts of patterns along the walls. The interiors contain some great antique Chinese figures and vases, Tibetan craft-artifacts, many painted-glass works (where a painting is done on the back of a piece of glass and then framed and displayed from the other side), over a hundred beautiful, detailed etchings of this region, and an ecclectic mix of European furniture.
The gardens are, of course, lovely and immaculate, as they cascade down to the water. The Count was also a renouned explorer, who scaled Everest, reached the North Pole and participated in 19 other such expeditions (sounds like us), and had some remarkable photos on the walls and other memorabilia from some of these. All in all, a magical place which we were able to enjoy in another day of perfect weather. On the boat ride there and back we met two Australian couples who were quite nice and gave us their info for our trip there next year. Can’t imagine how they’re doing these roads while driving on their wrong side.
We ferried back to Bellagio to revel in the privacy of our apartment. We first strolled the grounds of the Serbelloni, enjoying the views and their gardens, and ran into the cousin of good friends of Wendy’s! She’s staying here with a B & R walking tour (now we know who’s using up all the rooms!) and we may try to have a drink with her tomorrow. We then found an added bonus to this apartment — the phone system allows modem access and touch tones! (always good to have little things make one so happy)
Kind of missed the grappa nightcap, though.