Luckily when we woke up this morning it was all a bit calmer. In fact I was woken up to the sound of someone hoovering up pine needles in the garden to tidy up after last nights storm!
We had a lazy breakfast and decided on catching the 11-30 ferry from Desenzano to Sirmione. Any day that begins with a ferry ride is going to be a good one in my book, so I was looking forward to this trip. The weather was still a bit grey but with some promising blue bits -so I went for the optimistic shorts and T-shirts, whereas most people, Jane included, opted for Winter attire. Whilst we waited for the ferry we had a little mooch around Desenzano particularly the pretty little safe harbour for small boats which is picturesque and surrounded by cafes.
When it was time to board we joined a queue and then boarded the large ferry and climbed to the top for maximum views outside. The trip only takes 20 mins and the scenery is lovely. Lake Garda is dauntingly large and everything is really at a distance but the layered mountains are spectacular.
We landed in Sirmione and it was immediately very very busy. We followed the crowds and then vaguely went off in the direction of the tip of the Penninsula. We walked along down by the water admiring the views especially the impressive Cypress trees. We reached a ‘beach’ and Lido where there was a cantina so we stopped for a coffee. There were loads of sparrows around waiting for crumbs , even though we actually didn’t have any!
We watched as people jumped onto a particular rock to have their photos taken with the milky-blue lake in the background. After our coffee we went down there and had our photos taken by two very glamorous Swedes. The glamour girl took about 20 photos of us and then Jane returned the favour. Jane handed back their camera saying ‘I only took two as you looked gorgeous in both! ‘.
We followed the path along but it soon seemed to disappear on the rocks. After gathering some ‘sea glass’ and ancient pottery we made our way up to the Roman archaeological site of The Grottoes of Catullus. These are pretty expansive and spectacular. Imagine a huge Roman villa complex on this site overlooking Lake Garda. Wow! I downloaded a leaflet explaining more about it but we soon lost interest as we instead skipped about taking pictures of the all the views! Still we did visit the Museo too and had a quick look at the artefacts.
After our visit here which really was nice, quiet and worthwhile it was time for lunch. We wandered back into the village and found a free table in a restaurant right next to the most Instagrammable Bourganvilla in Sirmione! It was a perfect place for me to do a quick pencil sketch whilst we had a bit to eat and a cold one.
Now we needed to pay for lunch, so it was time to go to the Scaliger Castillo and climb 146 steps up to the top of the East Tower. It is actually an easy climb and the 360 degree views are outstanding.
We’d planned to reward ourselves with an ice cream from the ‘best gelataria’ in Sirmione but realised that the next ferry would be leaving in 6 mins. By now it was decidedly chilly and we didn’t fancy the wait for the next one in an hour and a half, so we skedaddled back to the ferry port and were chuffed to join the queue as the ferry hadn’t even yet arrived. Hurrah!
Back at the hotel it was nice to warm up and relax a bit and I was able to FaceTime Mum again. After a shower to freshen up we went out to the Mexican which Jane had found on TripAdvisor. It was actually a mile down the road at Porti Di Riveltella. Benjamin on reception (the one with the perfect English) recommended that we walk along by the lakeside as it was very safe. We followed his advice and it was lovely as the sunset behind us and the mountains and lake turned a pink colour.
The ‘El Mexico’ restaurant was fab and we had great service, including the lady whizzing off on her Vespa to go back home and pick up a bottle of Bardolino for us as they’d run out!! The food was great too especially the churros to finish it off! All we had to do now was walk home again by the main road. It seems they don’t really go in for taxis around here and quite clearly nobody walks by the main road! Anyway, despite the fellow who looked like he’d just got off a commuter train in London, being very confused about where Desenzano was, we got home safely after a very lovely day. More ferry rides tomorrow too!
Where shall we go to next? 