Another traveling month - almost all of the travelling by train and mostly spent in Northern Italy.
Reporting Days: 30
Location; Mostly Italy
Distance Walked: 282 km
Distance Driven: c. 150 km
Photographs Taken: Many hundreds. Mostly Italian rivers and mountains.
Trains (and buses)
This was my fourth visit to Italy over the last 18 months - and they've all been by train, although no two trips have been the same.
This month the trip started with the long day from London via Paris to Turin - the downside was the continuing need for a rail replacement bus to get around the still-blocked Frejus rail tunnel. The upside was waking up in a Turin hotel room on a sunny Saturday morning with a chilled day ahead. We probably wouldn't have been quite so relaxed if we'd known that the Sunday was the latest strike day on the Italian Railways!
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| Friday evening in Turin |
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| Strike Day Sunday in Turin |
Boario Terme, Val Camonica, Lombardy
Despite the fact that these regular Italian jaunts sound like an ideal holiday, there is a serious purpose behind the trips. Some of you will know that I was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease a couple of years ago, and that Boario Terme is the home of the European Parkinson's Therapy Centre. The Centre doesn't promise a cure but it does help one live better with Parkinson's. Aside from exercise regimen, it's a splendid excuse to top up on good Italian food, decent Italian wine - and some warm Italian sunshine. I expect to be back at the Centre again next May, and next Autumn. And the following Spring and Autumn..
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| Parc Terme in Boario |
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| Day out to Edolo in the Val Camonica, as were the Vespa Club of Pisogne |
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| Bridge over the River Oglio in Boario |
Val Gardena, Sud-Tirol
Having survived (thrived!) a two week stay in Boario Terme, it seemed right to add in some real holiday time. The first stop was in Ortisei in Val Gardena - a delightful wee town in the heart of the Dolomites, with lots of cable car options to take the grind out of the high level walks.
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| Ortisei in Val Gardena |
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| The high tops of the Dolomites have a fairy tale quality particularly with a dusting of fresh snow |
Stubai Tal, Tirol, Austria
The next (and final) stop was in the Stubai Valley in western Austria (just a few miles south of Innsbruck). This was one of several mountain trips that we had booked for Summer 2020, that got disrupted by the pandemic.
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| At the top of the Stubai Valley |
Next month, more time in the Stubai Valley, and there might even be some pictures from Oxford.