Since my excursion to somewhere in Switzerland in late August of last year, no other opportunities made themselves available in regards to day trips in Italy or beyond.
Nope, the second wave of ‘rona got in the way of that.
I even went so far as to daydream about Christmas break trips to Venice or Rome, but after summer ended, the way reality was shaping up crushed those plans to smithereens.
That, plus work stress and life stress—it was all piling up, and putting in the time and energy to plan out trips “for the future” seemed like a lost cause.
And it was, until April 26th, 2021 brought signs of hope. The following weekend—with the weather being a foreshadowing of a summer yet to come—was the first opportunity in months for lost souls to venture out once again.
I was itching to travel somewhere, anywhere, and I even thought about some “nearby” major cities I could try to visit from Milan.
Turin? Genova? Bergamo?
But, I ended up going somewhere not too far from my (weekend) homebase of Como—a special place at the center of Lago di Como, hand-in-hand with a special person—Bellagio.
Since moving to Italy, I have lost the urge to keep up with my early bird tendencies on weekends. With weekdays being harrowing at times, I decided that my time, on the weekend, should be spent in whichever way maximizes relaxation and recovery. And, whadya know, sleeping in till 11am or 12pm on Saturdays sometimes does the trick!
The good thing about Bellagio is that it’s small enough to explore within 2-3 hours. So even if you have errands to run on a Saturday morning but you’re somewhere in the Lago di Como region, it’s not too silly of an idea to drive up for a few hours of some nature eye-candy.
I. Mean. Eye. Candy.
At first, I wasn’t sure if I would end up going solo, but my companion offered to drive both of us in his car—on a winding, solitary road that overlooked the lake many times along the journey. It didn’t help that we were slowed down by a group of four girls who were also on their way to Bellagio, taking their share of pics for the ‘gram with their phones precariously held out the car windows.
When we did arrive close to 3pm, parking was a minor issue. We found a spot eventually, and shockingly had to pay by the hour. I guess it wasn’t too much of a surprise given that it’s a ploy to get every last bit of a tourist’s pocket change, but at least the rate wasn’t Los Angeles-crazy 😂.
Since I’ve seen Lake Como from Como city many times, it seemed redundant to find a viewpoint to look out at the water in Bellagio, but that’s the main attraction 😂. Technically, there are some differences in the landscape…
It was interesting to see how the mountain “terrain” changed across a panoramic-like view.
But the best part of going out to see the water at this time and location, was the wildlife of course.
I had front-row seats for the Momma & Babes show 🥺!!!
We weren’t the only ones enamored by their cuteness. Other people surrounding the dock seemed to notice my excitement (I was literally pointing and waving my arms at the ducks!) and shifted the focus of their phone cameras from the landscape to a few baby birds.
After enough time was spent at the water, we decided to walk back towards the city center. My eyes fell upon the buildings that faced a central dining area of sorts, and I could not look away. The architecture was so fitting for Northern Italy.
A work colleague of my companion also happened to be in Bellagio at the same time and we ran into him. He was one of those guys who dresses up in a suit to eat pasta 😅.
South of the shops and eateries, there was a picturesque walking path with tall trees and perfectly-cut shrubbery all on the side.
Once again, it was another ideal location to stop and look out at the water. And sneakily people watch.
Two hours had passed by this point, and so my companion and I decided to take “the long way” back to the car. We passed the I Giardini di Villa Melzi, but it was another tourist trap that we ran from. They couldn’t stop me from taking pictures through the gates!!
To be fair, there weren’t that many people walking around that day, but I secretly appreciated that we were walking away from the crowds.
I started to figure out why we weren’t seeing many people at the point…the roads were increasing in elevation and our casual stroll was becoming a stairclimber session.
The biggest perk of this surprise workout was “accidentally” falling upon the Church of Goats*.
When special guests donkey and black baby goat made their appearances, I literally died 😂. My name is Pree and I like animals.
There was no issue with finding the parking lot since we pinned our location with Google Maps. We did however still have some more time left on the meter, so it was an excuse to walk through some alleyways for that authentic Italian “village” feel.
When we entered this path, I looked down at my sneakers and wished they had more padding at the bottom (can’t expect much from a cheap pair from Primark though…), but I was grateful that I wasn’t in a pair of high heels trying to navigate this pretty chaos!
As time started to inch closer to 6pm (or 18:00, military time for Europeans 😂), we called it a “day” and got back in the car. As I expected, I drifted in-and-out of sleep on the drive back: a genuine indication that I had a pleasantly exhausting time.
Wanna know one of the best things about travel, even if it’s just a short daytrip? Coming back home so exhausted and instantly falling into a deep sleep.
So, Bellagio. My few hours here were enjoyable and well-spent. And while the scenery was nice, the experience was much more memorable because I had someone special by my side. I could have gone on my own, but sometimes it’s nice to walk around with someone’s hand in yours.
And if they have a car, it saves you a bumpy bus ride 😂.