Italy’s Lakes

How to beat the Italian heat, Wall style!

We knew our sojourn to northern Italy was going to be a scorcher: 90o+ each day, horrid humidity. The thought of walking around crowded cities, trying to feign interest in churches and monuments, whilst lugging a panting dog, just sounded dreadful. So, we opted instead to spend two days on Italy’s lakes: Como and Garda.

Lake Como – Our first stop was the town of Como, itself. Sadly, George Clooney was nowhere to be found.

The Walls looking hot in Como (and I don’t mean sexy).

Como’s Duomo and crazy hill-top Villas.

 

Then, we headed to the beautiful town of Bellagio, known for its ritzy villas. No Clooney here either.

The streets of Bellagio.

 

Driving around Lake Como was no joke. Steep cliffs on one side. Straight down to the lake on the other. Hair-pin turns. Narrow roads. Confident resident drivers. Whoa! Don’t forget about the bicyclists, who put their lives in even greater risk than the drivers. We had it all!

 

 

Lake Garda – First stop around Lake Garda was the town of Lazise, where everyone got suited up for some swimming!

Yes, our dog has a life preserver. Safety first, bro. She clearly loves it!

After trying to wade through the stone, mud, gravel bottom of the lake, we made a critical decision that saved the day….

…rent a paddle boat!!

With a slide? YES, PLEASE!!!

 

I mean, come on, a girl who looks this good in a life preserver deserves to spend her day on a luxury paddle boat!

 

Our final stop on Lake Garda was the town of Torri del Benaco, for a snack and to let Liv get her land-legs back!

Torri del Benaco and Lake Garda

 

der Zulassungsbescheid

…finally!

Rejection letters never come in big envelopes, right? We hope…

It reads:

Approval document for winter semester 2012/2013

Dear Mr. Wall,

Your application for the winter semester 2012/2013 in the following course of study at Albert-Ludwigs University Freiburg is approved:

Ending goal: Master of Arts (M.A.)

Subjects:

  • Political Science: main subject in 1st semester

 

Short. Direct. Impersonal. Were you expecting a love-letter? Come on, people, this is Germany.

Gut gemacht, Schatz.   It is all a plateau from here.

Wanna be Foodies in Scandinavia

I knew we were in for some interesting food experiences, just based on what I had read about all three of the countries we were visiting. So, this post is dedicated solely to our gastronomic adventures through Sweden, Norway, and Iceland! It is also dedicated to Chip, the most dedicated food-photographer I know!

 

SWEDEN

One can’t visit Sweden without enjoying a famed Svenskt Smörgåsbord.  Also, notice how the portions get smaller through every course!

1st Plate: Seven different types of herring, boiled new potatoes, sour cream and onions.

2nd Plate: Three types of salmon, two types of reindeer (meat and Pâté), venison, and two potato salads (one with shrimp, one with herring).

3rd Plate: Swedish meatballs with lingonberry jam and the traditional Jansson's Temptation (chopped potatoes with anchovies).

4th Plate: Cheesecake, apple strudel, and "cookies".

Mid-summer also means strawberry season in Sweden! The strawberries we bought at a road-side stand on the way to Lake Siljan were delicious, but dessert at our hotel restaurant was even better…

Strawberries topped with strawberry sorbet and sprinkled with brown sugar. Super-sour fruit roll-up on the side. Invisible surprise inside...pop-rocks!!

 

NORWAY

Eating in Norway was unbelievably expensive. But, how often can you embark on this culinary craziness?!

Whale steak wrapped in bacon (Joe's yummy salmon filet in the background).

Moose stew (it looked absolutely disgusting on the plate, but it was super tasty!).

Bergen had one of the best first markets I have even seen. Not only could you take home whatever you wanted to enjoy for dinner, but there were also hot grills ready to cook up your selection for instantaneous enjoyment.

Tasty fish market dinner: King crab-legs and salmon.

 

ICELAND

This meal was tapas style, thank goodness. The restaurant was really dark, which I was also grateful for!

Smoked Puffin!