A re-post from June 30, 2008. Sure is hard to believe that was one year ago, because it feels like yesterday.
With TV, you are more-or-less forced to watch the thing because it tends to grab our passive brains. With blogs and newspapers, you can easily skip stuff you chose to ignore. So if I am boring you with my northern Italy travelogue posts, please skip over them. It's just fun for me to post the photos - and it motivates me to get them organized.
One day last week we took the train up to Domodossola to catch the regular Centovalli train (not the tourists' Lago Maggiore Express which doesn't do much stopping) through the Alps to Locarno, Switzerland, on the northern tip of Lago Maggiore.
It is our travel custom to make things complicated and to plan tight connections - and to thereby create adventures, memorable mishaps, stress, and close calls. The free-spirited Mrs. BD thrives on such things, but I do not. As it turns out, The Dylanologist loves to cut things close, too, and to dash off somewhere when he has a free 3 minutes to spare.
We got off the train halfway at the whistle-stop of Santa Maria Maggiore (nobody else got off) to take a hike in the Alps. We planned to hike up the mountains in a circle through the mountain hamlets of Toceno and Craveggia, and to arrive back down at Santa Maria Maggiore in time for the last train to Locarno, to arrive there with 16 minutes to find and to catch the last boat down Lake Maggiore to where we were staying in the cozy village of Baveno.
We are tireless and intrepid walkers, but we characteristically underestimated the distance of our hike as we always do, and did not expect the heat. No water, and no cafes open. But we did get to stumble into the rarely-visited Alpine village of Craveggia (pop. 730). Eventually, with ten minutes before the train and without knowing our exact location, we swallowed our pride and flagged down a passing house painter who happily and cheerfully got us to the station in his tiny two-door rattletrap car - just as the tiny train pulled into the tiny "Disney Italy" station.
No passport checks, by the way, training into Switzerland. We brought them anyway.
Here's a map showing the northern tip of Piedmont where it pushes into Switzerland. The Centovalli train runs on one track from Domodossola to Locarno, at the tip of the Lake, over fearsome gorges and hairy mountain cliffs.
Let's begin this photo tour, though, with this northern Italian lovely in a cafe on the old square of Domodossola, who our sneaky paparazzi Dylanologist photographed on my dare. I call that "La bella figura." Plenty of real blonds up there.
Travelogue of this side-trip with lots of photos below on continuation page -
The Baveno train station, headed up to Domodossola to catch the Centovalli train east:
Alps around the Domodossola train station:
The old piazza in Domodossola, with the market - veggies, fruits, cheeses, and sausages:
An old building on that piazza:
As the train ascends the high valley, lots of woods and deep ravines, but dotted with little farms with well-cared-for vineyards:
Another:
If you get off the train at Santa Maria Maggiore, you would think you were in Switzerland:
Our hike up through Craveggio:
More:
More Craveggio:
More:
more: But where are all the people?
A crossroads, with a sign! The sign helped, but we were still many kilometers away: "SM Maggiore":
Finally, to the ferry leaving Locarno:
In my post on The Centovalli Train, I asked "Where are all the people?" Many of these towns in Italy look neat, clean - but deserted, which adds to the stage-set feeling.Maybe it's the time of day, but part of the answer is No babies in Euroland
Tracked: Jun 30, 15:31