We Had a Great August Vacation!
Every year our factory closes for two weeks in August for maintenance and cleaning. The Tandem Spirits usually take this opportunity to meet up with our dear friends Ute and Winnie in the mountains in Switzerland. This year we were joined by 2 of their daughters and 2 other girlfriends. This made a grand total of 6 ladies, Winnie and me! This year the weather was almost perfect with the temperature in the mid 20’s which was much more comfortable than almost anywhere in Italy.
Cremona - The Violin Museum: Amati, Guarneri & Stradivari
We always pick a place to stop on the way to and from Switzerland. This year we went to Cremona, a lovely town in Northern Italy. The big draw for us was the Violin Museum, as Cremona is the place where three of the earliest and most renowned violin makers (luthiers) had their workshops – Amati, Guarneri and Stradivari. Even today the city is known for the master luthiers still making instruments by hand. After we arrived, we walked around town, visited the Cathedral and then had a nice apertivo in the square near the Cathedral. We had dinner at an very good Indian restaurant, Royal Taj. The following day we visited the Violin Museum, which has interactive exhibits on sound and crafting violins in addition to displays of gorgeous antique and modern instruments.
The Afternoon & Evening in Cremona
The Violin Museum
Our Week in Wildhaus
We spent a week with our friends hiking, swimming and eating in Wildhaus Switzerland. We had less than a day of rain, and even that was welcome. One of the nice things about our summers with Ute and Winnie is that we all pitch in and make meals together. Ute is a great cook and James loves to cook, especially “non-traditional” dishes.
The Evening in Vicenza
On the return drive to Italy we stopped in Vicenza for the night. Being mid-August, it was very quiet. When we walked around town some shops were open, but even the churches wee closed, which we found quite strange. We had dinner at a place called Signorviono where we enjoyed a nice dinner surrounded by hundreds of bottles of wine. We each had a nice glass of valpollacello.
Back in Umbria - The Sellano Tibetan Bridge
Back in Foligno it was really hot. August 15th is the Feast day of the Assumption, a national holiday in Italy. It is also called Ferragosto, (August holiday) and it is the embodiment of summer in Italy. Many families go to the beach, to parks for picnics or to agriturismos for lunch. In that spirit, we drove up into the mountains to the town of Sellano and thoroughly enjoyed the walk across the Tibetan Bridge that goes from there to the town of Montesanto. It is the highest Tibetan Bridge in Europe – 175 Meters high, and 517.5 meters across with 1068 steps. After the bridge we hiked to the Rota waterfalls, then from Montesanto down to Lake Vigi and back up to Sellano. As it turned out, the post-bridge hike (about 8km) was rather challenging, but worth the effort. Before leaving we treated ourselves to a cold beer and a porchetta sandwich.
wonderful place