Train strikes, shopping, food and wine

Trains

Strike, strike strike, after a fitful Adriatic crossing from Croatia to Italy, neither of us slept particularly well even in our luxurious bunk bed cabin.  We had zero confidence that we would get a train to Bologna.   Cancelled trains greeted us and the line to the poor info desk clerk who looked like he had been at his desk for days versus an hour was very long. Eventually, we along with our new found stranded friends Eleonore (French) and Tim (Swiss) we slowly made our way on a few regional trains to Bologna. Despite the delays we had a great time conversing about the joys of travel with our new friends.   

Bologna 

The city of steeples (to be honest we hadn't realised that until our sister Julie-Ann mentioned it.)  Also fashion!  Wow the Italians dress well and the variety of clothes stores is amazing.  After purchasing, shoes, pants, jacket and shirts (not sure how we will fit it in our bag).

The bells of Bologna which ring at very odd hours for a very long time were our constant companions so too was the restaurant located under our window until 11.30 pm each night.  Even though a noisy town we loved every moment and would return.  

Bradley’s main reason though for visiting Bologna was to test their Spaghetti Bolognese and measure it against his own, world famous recipe that utilised the now defunct Paul Newman’s Sockeroomi Spaghettio Sauce. He had to admit that the Bolognese in Bologna was pretty damn good - nearly on a par with his own!  

We then travelled to Stresa, but not before we were  treated to further Italian transport treats when they cancelled the last leg of our train journey without notice. The locals were great though, and helped us out immensely and we eventually got there by bus without too much drama. 

In Stresa we stayed on Isola Bella on Lake Maggiore (beautiful island) a decadent and idyllic 3 night stay.  The palazzo Borromeo built over 4 centuries is interesting but the gardens are truly amazing.  The boutique hotel only had one other booking but during the day the island had a stream of visitors.  

View from our balcony

Next stop Montreux where Bradley and I got to practice our non existent French on the locals. Most of the Swiss speak three or four languages so we got by! We spent a day in Geneva exploring the town and, most importantly, buying ourselves an excessive amount of chocolate. We then finished up by testing the local cuisine; potato rosti and fondu! Delicious, but how all the Swiss do not suffer from heart disease we cannot understand. 

The next day we spent the morning chatting with some new friends, Cindy and William from San Diego, who gave us a tip to visit Chillon Castle, a wonderfully restored medieval castle on the shores of the lake. Along the walk to the castle are a series of statues celebrating all sorts of visitors to Montreux including Tolstoy, Byron and Freddie Mercury. Fun fact: ‘Smoke on the Water’ by Deep Purple was inspired by the burning of the Montreux Casino in 1971.