Stresa, Piemonte, ItalyBuongiorno Stresa !
It’s a beautiful morning here in Italy.
.. feels good to be back on Italian soil. I take a little walk this morning up to the shop to buy a fresh cornetto pastry for Holly & me. Coffee & breakfast on our terrace is just lovely.
Today we are doing some island hopping. There are three islands very nearby to the shore of Lake Maggiore here in Stresa. These are called the Borromean Islands and include Isola Bella with a grand palace and formal gardens, Isola Pescatori with a little fishing village, shops and restaurants, and Isola Madre which seems to be the smallest with an old, elegant palazzo and elaborate wooded gardens taking up the whole of the little island.
We buy our tickets and catch the ferry down at the Carciano dock which is a short walk down the hill from our villa. The ferry ride to the first island, Isola Bella, is very short - about 5 minutes.
Off the ferry, we find ourselves on a little island with some shops and cafes. We work our way down the main street to find the entrance to the palace and gardens we are here to visit. At the ticket office, we buy a combination ticket for both Isola Bella and Isola Madre.
The into the palace we go....
Once inside we are blown away by the grand staircase and then subsequently by each room we walk into. This palace is huge! It’s so beautifully decorated and out every window there is a splendid view of the lake and other islands. Out the window we see loads of swimmers in a race on the lake. We find out later that this is a practice open water race for the real deal happening in a few days. More exploration of this palace takes us through the throne room, a grand hall with ceilings so very high and a lower floor level of grotto upon grotto. Outside the palace, we wander through a large formal garden with statues, white peacocks and beautiful plants. Not to mention the views across the lake everywhere you look. There are giant gardenia plants that are full of gardenia bloom with their wonderful scent. I want to take some home! So beautiful.
Next stop is Isola Pescatori... while waiting for the ferry to arrive we poke around the little shops. The ferry takes just a little bit to reach the second island.
Here there is a tiny, little village with a fishing history. We find the Ristorante Italia where we are going to have some lunch. I order the calamari which is so delicious. Cindy had some fish. Holly had a tortelloni dish with butter sage. Our lunch is a little long because the restaurant is busy but we are happy to have a nice meal before heading on to our final island destination.
Isola Madre is the island farthest away from Stresa. The ferry makes a stop at a small town on the shores before reaching the little island. Here on Isola Madre we find an old palace and a wooded, rolling garden space that takes up most of the remaining space on the island. The gardens are beautiful with wonderful plants, trees and flowers. The palace is in contrast to one on Isola Bella in that it’s showing it’s age and wear quite a bit more. However, it’s beautiful and quite interesting as the rooms are filled with furnishings and wall decorations... and a bunch of creepy mannequin men that looked like they were following you with their eyes.
They had displays of marionette puppets and a whole puppet theatre set up that was rather grim as it was the setting of hell. Outside in the gardens we found these most amazing, enormous water lilies that we couldn’t believe were so tall!
Back on the ferry, we are headed back to the Carciano stop in Stresa with a change of ferry boats at Isola Bella. Back on solid ground, we head up the hill to our villa for a little mezzogiorno rest period before we head out for an evening in Stresa. The apartment at the top of this villa is very comfortable and so cute so we are enjoying spending some time here.
Walking back into Stresa, we are heading to the Hotel La Palma for a visit to the Sky Bar. Of course there is a long wait but there is a garden with some seating where we can enjoy some drinks before heading up to the Sky Bar for some more drinks. We love aperitivo in Italy! They bring some snacky-snacks again with our drinks. Most of the time it’s olives, potato chips and peanuts. Finally it’s our turn to go up to the Sky Bar. Here we order some yummy drinks, Violet Spritz and Amarena Spritz (cherry). Both are delicous. The views up here at the Sky Bar are worth the wait too!
Next we walk into town to do a little shopping, wander a little bit on the streets and have gelato one more time in Stresa. The violet and DiSarrono flavors were so perfect yesterday I have to get an encore performance. So delicious!
Another lovely evening in Stresa ... we wander back to our villa for the night.
2025-05-22