The next morning, it was still misty and rainy. I made my way down to the continental breakfast at the hotel and then took the bus to a gondola in the next town over. By the time I got there, the rain had let up a little and I had a 3 hour window before the next storm rolled in. I wanted to see how much of the Puez-Odle Altopiano I could complete before I got rained out.
There's something kind of interesting about riding in a gondola cabin and having a gust of 60 mph wind hit you out of nowhere. It felt like I was just about the only person braving the rain and wind that morning, but that was more than fine with me.
Halfway up, I had to switch to a different gondola, so I got off and walked around for a bit before hopping on the next leg.
I hiked for a while and then grabbed a snack at the Refugio before the storm hit and then I went back to Santa Cristina and found a Doner Kebab spot for an early dinner.
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| They had these really comfy wooden lounge chairs all around the patio. |
It was another beautiful evening spent watching movies in bed with the windows open and the rain pouring outside <3
It dumped rain all night and all of the next day so I slept in a bit, ate a long, lazy breakfast, and watched The Shining on my English channel. By about 10:30 am, I decided to risk losing my precious parking space and take a drive for a few hours to explore some of the mountain passes in the area. I drove and hiked and stopped at raging waterfalls and watched the clouds drift in and out and walked through tiny little mountain villages and just thoroughly enjoyed myself.
This particular spot was really cool. As I was driving this windy mountain pass, I spotted a little structure on the hillside up above. By the time I got up to the hill, the clouds had moved in and I could no longer see the building, but I got out and hiked the path in it's direction anyway, as my curiosity was piqued. By the time I got to the top of the hill (not 3 minutes later), the clouds cleared out and there was a tiny little chapel up there!
Then it was more Doner Kebab and Baklava take-out and Argo in bed.
The next morning, I packed, ate breakfast, checked out of my hotel, and then hit the road south towards Garda on my way back to Venice. The rain clouds were burning off and much of what I'd seen driving around the previous day was alive with activity and the warm sun. I reached the top of Passo Sella and saw the sun peeking through the mist that was passing through the massive pillars of stone and decided that that was my chance to take the gondola up to Sassalungo.
The gondola consists of tiny little coffin-sized cabins that you take a running leap to get into with the help of two burly men. It doesn't slow down one bit so it's a little intimidating but I made it inside without incident. I felt a bit like I had died and was being whisked up 1600' to heaven in my coffin. It was lovely. Getting off was a whole other adventure. I was the first one up and explored a bit before everybody else began to show up. It started out being super foggy but it cleared out for a bit before drifting back in and ultimately beginning to snow.
In the photos above, you can spot the trail heading off into the mist. It crossed a couple waterfalls and then began to get VERY sketchy. Generally, trails like this lead to some incredible places with either a summit of some sort or just really epic views. Well, with the heavy fog, I couldn't see anything, so it didn't seem worth it to risk life and limb. Looking down, I couldn't see past about 3 feet and it felt like gazing into a steaming cauldron of doom, so I turned around.
From there, I drove to Trento. I walked around for a couple of hours, checked out the Castle Museum, and ate lunch.
About an hour later, I arrived at my hotel for the night in Arco... just minutes from Lake Garda. I checked in and then drove into Garda for dinner and to walk around.
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| The view from my room <3 |
The next morning (after an abysmal breakfast :| ), I set out in search of the Sanctuary Madonna della Corona. My GPS said that it was 20 km away and I had 55 km to empty, so like a fool, I thought I'd zip up there and then come back into town for gas afterwards. Well, of course I got lost...really lost. I drove around and around and could only find a building that was closed. I parked and walked around the building looking for any sign of what I was looking for, but couldn't spot anything telling. So, I got back in my car and drove a ways further into the next town. I was directed back to that building so I went back and got out and looked some more, but it just didn't seem right. The building was closed, there were only maybe 3 other cars in the parking lot and there was no signage indicating that that's where the site was. I felt like such an idiot. I realize now that I was right on top of the monastery, but just couldn't see it so I gave up and drove back down to the lake, coasting into the gas station with about 4 km left until empty. It was the closest I've ever come to running out of gas, but I didn't!
I found a parking spot on the water in Torri Del Benaco, so I paid for a couple of hours and set off into town to explore. It was the most beautiful day and they hey have the prettiest walkway along the lake and then the cutest little shops and cafes lining the narrow streets.
I had to make sure that my last meal in Italy was a good one!
I finally drove to Venice and found my Bed & Breakfast for the night. My flight didn't leave until mid-morning so I was able to enjoy breakfast and then drive to the airport where I could enjoy a couple of hours in the lounge. The flight went great and I didn't get sick! Brian's parents picked me up from the airport and Brian drove up to meet me at their house for the evening. We drove back home the next morning and I think this was the very first time I've flown overseas and haven't gotten jet lag. Hallelujah!
It was truly just the best vacation...I loved every minute. Like I said before, I think this is a trip that I'm going to be taking every summer while I'm able to. Our next trip is in just a couple of weeks and we're going to Portugal so I'm super excited for that. I'll see you back here then!