We knew today was going to be a very scenic drive as we headed north to Castelrotto, Italy. Castelrotto or Kastelruth as it is also known, is right in the mountain range in north Italy, known as the Dolomites. Prior to WW I, this area of Italy was part of Austria-Hungary, but was “given” to Italy after the war. As a result, the area still has a very strong Austrian cultural influence and most people are bilingual, speaking both German and Italian. As has been the case for our entire vacation, we did not take the highways if possible. We
left Verona and headed north to drive along the coast of Lake Garda, which is one of the largest lakes in Italy. The water was a beautiful turquoise color, and reminded me of the the water off the coast of Cancun, Mexico. We drove north along the banks of the lake and passed through many small Italians towns and villages filled with many vacationers, particularly a large numbe
r of campers from the Netherlands. After passing north of Lake Garda, we began to drive more directly toward the Dolomites. We drove up and through all of the various mountain passes and small towns in the area. Neither words nor photos can describe or do justice to the sights we actually saw. The way the roads would wind up through the mountains with constant hairpin turns was amazing. Driving the VW with a standard transmission, it was rare that I was able to get out of second gear. The roads we took were not for the light hearted, especially as the Italian drivers would take incredible risks, especially those on motorcycles. As we began to reach the higher elevations, the sights continued to be amazing. The Dolomites, are huge white/gray mountains made of limestone, which have a
totally different appearance than the Alps which we had just seen in Switzerland. After a long day of driving and constant stopping to take in the scenery, we finally reached our hotel by 5:30. Since Castelrotto is basically in the middle of nowhere and not on the typical American tourist path, it was difficult to find people that spoke English. This was rather challenging, but we adjusted..........checked into the hotel, had dinner and browsed the town before getting to bed.
We knew today was going to be a very scenic drive as we headed north to Castelrotto, Italy. Castelrotto or Kastelruth as it is also known, is right in the mountain range in north Italy, known as the Dolomites. Prior to WW I, this area of Italy was part of Austria-Hungary, but was “given” to Italy after the war. As a result, the area still has a very strong Austrian cultural influence and most people are bilingual, speaking both German and Italian. As has been the case for our entire vacation, we did not take the highways if possible. We
left Verona and headed north to drive along the coast of Lake Garda, which is one of the largest lakes in Italy. The water was a beautiful turquoise color, and reminded me of the the water off the coast of Cancun, Mexico. We drove north along the banks of the lake and passed through many small Italians towns and villages filled with many vacationers, particularly a large numbe
r of campers from the Netherlands. After passing north of Lake Garda, we began to drive more directly toward the Dolomites. We drove up and through all of the various mountain passes and small towns in the area. Neither words nor photos can describe or do justice to the sights we actually saw. The way the roads would wind up through the mountains with constant hairpin turns was amazing. Driving the VW with a standard transmission, it was rare that I was able to get out of second gear. The roads we took were not for the light hearted, especially as the Italian drivers would take incredible risks, especially those on motorcycles. As we began to reach the higher elevations, the sights continued to be amazing. The Dolomites, are huge white/gray mountains made of limestone, which have a
totally different appearance than the Alps which we had just seen in Switzerland. After a long day of driving and constant stopping to take in the scenery, we finally reached our hotel by 5:30. Since Castelrotto is basically in the middle of nowhere and not on the typical American tourist path, it was difficult to find people that spoke English. This was rather challenging, but we adjusted..........checked into the hotel, had dinner and browsed the town before getting to bed.
No comments:
Post a Comment