One day to Como

Cities are fun, but sometimes you need to make a little detour into the countryside. To change the scenery, we quitted Milan and took the train to Lake Como in the north of Italy. Lake Como is a long and huge lake, reaching all the way to Switzerland. It was a lovely, sunny day. The Lake sparkled in the sun and we were even hesitant to spend too much in the open in fear of sunburning.

Como itself is a small, laidback town. Simple and relaxing. Just sit on a terrace with a beer and let the sun warm your face. A stroll around the harbour puts you in full view of the lake, which is a great sight. The water rests enclosed in small mountains (or high hills), and if you're coming from Milan, the openness, the space, is very relaxing to your soul. Finally some breathing room after days of oppressive buildings!

We took a little train up to the top of the nearest hill, and long lost memories of travels in the Alps with my parents came rushing in. I rediscovered a feeling that I had almost forgotten. A feeling of freedom and awe. I don't think my travelbuddy noticed any of this in me. At the top I was very glad indeed to get a view of Switzerland, the magical place that had awakened these feelings. I tried to capture it on a photograph, but my imagination made it more grand than I could capture.

Also, the view on Como was very nice. The land was a bit misty farther away, but you could still see the flowing Italian fields all the way up to Turin. We took some icecream and headed back to the train. Milan was waiting and I was almost sorry.