Those four days have been such a treat! My parents invited me join them on their spontaneous trip to Italy. Me loving travelling and also living apart for them I saw this as a nice oppertunity to spend some quality time with them and explore Bella Italia!
It was only my second visit in this country and so far it was a great experience! The country treated me well concerning food (vino, pasta, pizza and gelato), small cute towns and beautiful landscapes.
Lazise
This small town is located in the southern part of the big lake Garda. You enter the city through a big ancient archway. On your left you find a great castel, unfortunately this is not open to visitors as it is privately owned. However you can enjoy the architecture from the outside and there is a nice little restaurants in the courtyard of the castel, where you can enjoy the beautiful garden and some yummy lunch.
I took a long nice stroll around the city center where I by accident stumbled over this great vinery! The building is picture-perfect outside and inside! The owner gave us a free tasting of his local vine and olive oil assortments and packed with three new wines we walked on. There are plenty of great gelaterias where you can enjoy the best ice cream on this planet! I am greatful for the Italian Ice cream crafting skills!
Peschiera del Garda
Every Monday there is a big market! Grab a bike and cycle along the lago to enter this beautiful town! The market is mainly stands selling clothes, shoes and nice pottery for your home. There are also a few stands with vegtables and fruits. I highly recommend to drop by the organic honey stand where they sell honey for normal consumption as well as medical one and nice honey cosmetics. Later on we had some hot choclate with a view on this beautiful promenade! (Yes, of course here are the prices a bit higher as elsewhere!) The city is surrounded by a big fortress which back in the days was constructed by the Austrians and French. But don’t be dissapointed of course ancient roman heritage can also be found! If you are interested in the history of the buildings get out your phone and download the free guide to dive into it! The download qr-code is on lots of signs throught the city.
Sirmione
This city is really pittoresque, I guess how many people imagine Italy to be. Unfortunately it’s also full of tourists. Make sure that you get there early in the morning! But I still recommend you to visit this city! It’s a small half-island all the way in the south of the lago. At some spots you have the lake next to you on literally your right side and left side! All the way at the top of the city/island is a massive old villa called Grotte di Catullo from ancient roman times. It’s surrounded by beautiful old olive trees and you have an amazing view of the rest of the city! It’s a 15-20 min walk up the hill from the city center. I really recommend you to go there 🙂 There is lot’s of space to relax and enjoy the view, pack some picknick and treat yourself! If you don’t feel like walking (or have a really tired dog with, like me :P) you can go up an down with a little cart, for only one Euro they take you.
The entrance costs for the villa are six Euros, only three if you are a student and show your student card. Dogs are wecome! You can stroll around the olive trees and see the ancient building”leftovers” I really loved this place and all the great views and there are much less tourists and you have time to enjoy yourself. Next to the outdoor site there is also a museum.
