Wes and Marlow
Menaggio, Lago di Como, Italia
25 September to 2 October, 2019
I read this week Qantas Airlines will make a twenty hour non-stop flight. A commercial non-stop of that length has never been made. The jet will have a few dozen passengers. There will be various research specialists on board to study how the flight crew, pilots and passengers respond to the twenty hour experience.
Our flight from Los Angeles to Milan was eleven hours. That was plenty long. We had good seats. We wore pajamas. We had amusements and blankets. Still, it was plenty long.
From the airport, we rode a train to the small city of Como. Como is probably an interesting destination of it’s own. Several famous standard repertoire operas were conducted, by their composers, there. But mostly, Como is a point of departure for visitors to Menaggio, Varenna and Bellaggio, the three famous villages at the center of three-pronged Lago di Como.
We were a bit sleepy looking as we sat for a snack in Como waiting for our boat to Menaggio. The ride was 45 minutes. On the way we passed fairy tale villas on points of land which jut into the lake. The moment we arrived in Menaggio we were energized. It is a great feeling to return to a place you loved and find you love it even more. This is our third visit to Lago di Como and we are as enthralled as ever.
It was a perfect day. Blue sky. Puffy white clouds. 75 degrees. Our apartment on the top floor (the third) of a medieval era building had a small round Juliet balcony overlooking the piazza; perfect for serenading the people below with viola melodies or an impromptu opera aria.
The main piazza in Menaggio is a triangle. The long side of the triangle is Lake Como. Directly across the water are Varenna in one direction and Bellaggio in another. In this area we expect to spend time on the water. The villages are connected by daily ferry service. The ferries are little boats though some carry a half-dozen motor vehicles. Beyond the ferries you can rent a motorboat by the hour. Years ago we did that. It was indescribable. This time we did it again.
We revisited the same boat vendor. I showed him a photo I made of him seven years ago when he was a teenager. He laughed, “that was a dozen kilos ago,” he said. He walked us down the dock. In the water we saw hefty three pound fish, lunch, swimming in groups. (Lavarello they are called. A simple white fish. They are grilled and served with chopped almonds or butter and sage.) At the end of the dock was our boat. Our clerk gave Wes a quick tutorial (most of which he remembered from seven years earlier) and off we went.
There are three directions you can go from Menaggio. (Perhaps I am repeating myself: Lake Como is composed of three finger lakes which meet in the center where the three villages I mentioned sit on opposing shores.) We headed north toward the Valtellina region. It was forty minutes at moderate speed to the end of the lake. We could have parked the boat to go ashore anywhere, but did not. The scenery is calming. The mountains rise from the lake. Eventually they become the Alps. The villages each have a castle, scenic villa (by scenic, I mean, we see them and feel “wow!!”) , churches, bell towers, ancient monasteries, etc.
The Valtellina region figured largely in our Menaggio eating. Aside from eating and being on the water and admiring scenery there is little else to do. It is a place to leave behind the concerns of the city, to decompress. Aside from the historic presence here of ancient Roman philosophers, composers and writers a landmark event was that here Benito Mussolini was brought to justice. He took refuge while on the run. Then was rounded up unrecognized in a group arrest. Once recognized he and his lady-friend were stood against a wall and shot. Justice was served. Then the public in Milan had their way with his corpse which hung in the public Piazalle Loreto. It is a dark tale, but because we like justice it is a happy ending.
There were several outstanding meals in Menaggio. Ristorante Il Vapore sits on a piazza adjacent to ours. It is the ground floor of a small inn, run by the mamma and her son. The fish from Lake Como is simple: grilled and lightly dressed. They prepare the classic Valtellina pasta, pizzoccheri (pronounced pete-SAW-ked-dee). Pizzoccheri is made with buckwheat flour, oil, water and potato; more or less. It is served like a casserole baked with potato cubes, chopped cabbage, butter and Valtellina’s casera cheese. It is hearty, filling comfort food, good for a cold winter. Our appetizer was a plate of Lake Como fish (a trout type and a salmon colored fish) pulled into flakes and lightly dressed with olive oil and lemon juice. I complimented the owner. She waved off my comments and said, “no, we serve only simple food.”
Another meal at Trattoria La Vecchia Magnolia similarly was “simple food”. Here they make Sciatt della Valtellina: an unusual fried ball, like a falafel ball, but made from buckwheat flour, casera cheese and beer.
We ate again after seven years at Pizza Lugano. The pizza maker (pizzaiolo, probounced Peets-eye-oh-lo) worked near our table on a porcini mushroom pizza. We ordered carrot salad and tomato salad. The carrots arrived shredded in a bowl and the tomatoes sliced in another bowl ready for us to dress with the olive oil and vinegar on the table.
We had several meals at a restaurant a ferry ride away. In miles it was nearby. But the ferry, as a bus does, made several stops crisscrossing the lake. We arrived after one hour. The boat was our favorite, The Milano. Over one-hundred years old with a cute single smokestack, it is the first boat we rode on Lake Como seven years ago. Trattoria Santo Stefano, already one of our favorites, won us over all over again. Everything was remarkably tasty. I asked if nonna (grandmother) was in the kitchen. No. The chef looked like a skinny teenager and was from Sicily. We ate carpaccio di ricciola fresca (amberjack) marinata agli agrumi di Sicilia and zenzero (Sicilian citrus and ginger.) Caponata siciliana: delicate tender pink cubes of eggplant marinated in citrus and mild vinegar and oil and tomato with capers. Spaghetti al pesto Trapanese: Trapanese pesto uses almonds in place of pine nuts. Finally, Mixta Griglia, which as it sounds is mixed grill, an assortment of grilled objects (seafood) from the lake.
On Sunday there was an exciting airshow. Ten jets flew in precise formations. Like a school of fish they turned this way and that always in perfect alignment. Now and then one peeled off from the group, flew straight up, did a fake stall, then made a spiraling nose dive straight toward the water. At the end the emitted, out their jets’ rear ends the colors of the Italian flag which made the crowd squeal.
One morning in Menaggio, I wrote this .... As I stand with my back to the water on this small piazza at the shore of Lago di Como the sun shines on my balding head and after a perfect brioche con marmellata, all is well. The piazza is picture perfect. The surrounding buildings, each three stories, are in excellent state of repair. Their colors are varying shades of salmon, cantaloupe, mocha and sunshine. Wrought iron balconies enable one to step out for air, for the vista or to say hello to your friends and neighbors on the street. The 10:30 AM sunlight on the lake is brilliant glittering gold.
Wes and Marlow
Menaggio, Lago di Como, Italia
25 September to 2 October, 2019
Menaggio, Lago di Como, Italia
25 September to 2 October, 2019
I read this week Qantas Airlines will make a twenty hour non-stop flight. A commercial non-stop of that length has never been made. The jet will have a few dozen passengers. There will be various research specialists on board to study how the flight crew, pilots and passengers respond to the twenty hour experience.
Our flight from Los Angeles to Milan was eleven hours. That was plenty long. We had good seats. We wore pajamas. We had amusements and blankets. Still, it was plenty long.
From the airport, we rode a train to the small city of Como. Como is probably an interesting destination of it’s own. Several famous standard repertoire operas were conducted, by their composers, there. But mostly, Como is a point of departure for visitors to Menaggio, Varenna and Bellaggio, the three famous villages at the center of three-pronged Lago di Como.
We were a bit sleepy looking as we sat for a snack in Como waiting for our boat to Menaggio. The ride was 45 minutes. On the way we passed fairy tale villas on points of land which jut into the lake. The moment we arrived in Menaggio we were energized. It is a great feeling to return to a place you loved and find you love it even more. This is our third visit to Lago di Como and we are as enthralled as ever.
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| Menaggio Waterfront |
It was a perfect day. Blue sky. Puffy white clouds. 75 degrees. Our apartment on the top floor (the third) of a medieval era building had a small round Juliet balcony overlooking the piazza; perfect for serenading the people below with viola melodies or an impromptu opera aria.
 |
| Menaggio Apartment View |
The main piazza in Menaggio is a triangle. The long side of the triangle is Lake Como. Directly across the water are Varenna in one direction and Bellaggio in another. In this area we expect to spend time on the water. The villages are connected by daily ferry service. The ferries are little boats though some carry a half-dozen motor vehicles. Beyond the ferries you can rent a motorboat by the hour. Years ago we did that. It was indescribable. This time we did it again.
We revisited the same boat vendor. I showed him a photo I made of him seven years ago when he was a teenager. He laughed, “that was a dozen kilos ago,” he said. He walked us down the dock. In the water we saw hefty three pound fish, lunch, swimming in groups. (Lavarello they are called. A simple white fish. They are grilled and served with chopped almonds or butter and sage.) At the end of the dock was our boat. Our clerk gave Wes a quick tutorial (most of which he remembered from seven years earlier) and off we went.
There are three directions you can go from Menaggio. (Perhaps I am repeating myself: Lake Como is composed of three finger lakes which meet in the center where the three villages I mentioned sit on opposing shores.) We headed north toward the Valtellina region. It was forty minutes at moderate speed to the end of the lake. We could have parked the boat to go ashore anywhere, but did not. The scenery is calming. The mountains rise from the lake. Eventually they become the Alps. The villages each have a castle, scenic villa (by scenic, I mean, we see them and feel “wow!!”) , churches, bell towers, ancient monasteries, etc.
The Valtellina region figured largely in our Menaggio eating. Aside from eating and being on the water and admiring scenery there is little else to do. It is a place to leave behind the concerns of the city, to decompress. Aside from the historic presence here of ancient Roman philosophers, composers and writers a landmark event was that here Benito Mussolini was brought to justice. He took refuge while on the run. Then was rounded up unrecognized in a group arrest. Once recognized he and his lady-friend were stood against a wall and shot. Justice was served. Then the public in Milan had their way with his corpse which hung in the public Piazalle Loreto. It is a dark tale, but because we like justice it is a happy ending.
There were several outstanding meals in Menaggio. Ristorante Il Vapore sits on a piazza adjacent to ours. It is the ground floor of a small inn, run by the mamma and her son. The fish from Lake Como is simple: grilled and lightly dressed. They prepare the classic Valtellina pasta, pizzoccheri (pronounced pete-SAW-ked-dee). Pizzoccheri is made with buckwheat flour, oil, water and potato; more or less. It is served like a casserole baked with potato cubes, chopped cabbage, butter and Valtellina’s casera cheese. It is hearty, filling comfort food, good for a cold winter. Our appetizer was a plate of Lake Como fish (a trout type and a salmon colored fish) pulled into flakes and lightly dressed with olive oil and lemon juice. I complimented the owner. She waved off my comments and said, “no, we serve only simple food.”
Another meal at Trattoria La Vecchia Magnolia similarly was “simple food”. Here they make Sciatt della Valtellina: an unusual fried ball, like a falafel ball, but made from buckwheat flour, casera cheese and beer.
We ate again after seven years at Pizza Lugano. The pizza maker (pizzaiolo, probounced Peets-eye-oh-lo) worked near our table on a porcini mushroom pizza. We ordered carrot salad and tomato salad. The carrots arrived shredded in a bowl and the tomatoes sliced in another bowl ready for us to dress with the olive oil and vinegar on the table.
We had several meals at a restaurant a ferry ride away. In miles it was nearby. But the ferry, as a bus does, made several stops crisscrossing the lake. We arrived after one hour. The boat was our favorite, The Milano. Over one-hundred years old with a cute single smokestack, it is the first boat we rode on Lake Como seven years ago. Trattoria Santo Stefano, already one of our favorites, won us over all over again. Everything was remarkably tasty. I asked if nonna (grandmother) was in the kitchen. No. The chef looked like a skinny teenager and was from Sicily. We ate carpaccio di ricciola fresca (amberjack) marinata agli agrumi di Sicilia and zenzero (Sicilian citrus and ginger.) Caponata siciliana: delicate tender pink cubes of eggplant marinated in citrus and mild vinegar and oil and tomato with capers. Spaghetti al pesto Trapanese: Trapanese pesto uses almonds in place of pine nuts. Finally, Mixta Griglia, which as it sounds is mixed grill, an assortment of grilled objects (seafood) from the lake.
On Sunday there was an exciting airshow. Ten jets flew in precise formations. Like a school of fish they turned this way and that always in perfect alignment. Now and then one peeled off from the group, flew straight up, did a fake stall, then made a spiraling nose dive straight toward the water. At the end the emitted, out their jets’ rear ends the colors of the Italian flag which made the crowd squeal.
One morning in Menaggio, I wrote this .... As I stand with my back to the water on this small piazza at the shore of Lago di Como the sun shines on my balding head and after a perfect brioche con marmellata, all is well. The piazza is picture perfect. The surrounding buildings, each three stories, are in excellent state of repair. Their colors are varying shades of salmon, cantaloupe, mocha and sunshine. Wrought iron balconies enable one to step out for air, for the vista or to say hello to your friends and neighbors on the street. The 10:30 AM sunlight on the lake is brilliant glittering gold.
Wes and Marlow
Menaggio, Lago di Como, Italia
25 September to 2 October, 2019
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