Our First Visitors! Italy with Lowell and Renee Thomas

We were extremely excited that Lowell and Renee were able to come back to Italy with us after all the fun we had in Switzerland.  Though we were still a little shaky on Italy ourselves (as proven by a wrong turn that resulted in the 10-minute walk to the train station becoming an hour walk to the train station), we couldn't wait to be able to share some of the experiences we were having in our new home with some friends.

Of course, the first thing we had to do Sunday night after arriving was get some pizza at the restaurant right outside our apartment.  After we moved in, it had quickly become one of our favorite spots and we couldn't wait to sit at a table for four rather than two; plus, who could pass up authentic Italian pizza for their first meal in Italy?!?!  We decided to do the smart thing: each get one pizza (very Italian) and let the sharing begin (not so Italian, but highly beneficial for all parties involved)!

As the next day was Monday, Luke had to miserably trudge off to work, while Lowell, Renee, and I set off to visit Lago Maggiore.  This may have been when the fated walk to the train station happened, and it also may have been due to my less-than-stellar-more-like-directionally-dyslexic navigational skills that the mishap occurred.  Thankfully, I was blessed to be with Lowell and Renee who were patient, understanding, and very resourceful in finally getting us to our destination.  Despite other bumps along the road (such as arriving in Arona only to find that the ferry Luke and I had originally taken to the islands stopped making those runs once "fall season" had begun the week after), we eventually made our way to Stresa, a very cool town further north along Lago Maggiore's coast, and boarded a ferry that would take us to Isola Madre.  This island was said to essentially be one huge garden, housing plants and animals from all over the world.  It was also the island that Luke and I missed on our trip, and since the other two islands were both amazing, I was very excited to see what it had to offer.

From when we first arrived, it was easy to see how different Isola Madre was from the two other islands around it.  Instead of being greeted with the usual souvenir stands, restaurants, and bustling crowd, we encountered a path overhung with trees that led us directly up to the ticket booth and garden gates.  We got our tickets, walked through the gates, and turned the corner to find incredible plants and amazing views.

One of the coolest parts about the garden on Isola Madre was that each tree and plant had a plaque in front of it that identified not only its name, but its country of origin as well.  It was really amazing to see so many interesting species from faraway places happily growing in harmony alongside one another.

 A view of Stresa, the city where we caught the ferry to the island.

In addition to the beautiful plant life, Isola Madre had some CRAZY-looking birds walking around.

 This one, which looked like a cross between a parrot and a peacock, immediately caught my attention (how could it not?!?).  I tried to sneakily get closer to get a good picture but had a hard time; initially it seemed highly illusive... until three more came out and wandered within inches of us, ready for their close-ups.  Renee took advantage of the situation and made a new exotic Italian friend.

Peacocks (both regular and all white ones) also wandered freely around the island, ready to greet us at every turn.

 

We made our way through the garden until we reached the manor.  Inside, it was like time had stood still, preserving decor, furniture, and artifacts from centuries ago.  They had an especially extensive collection of puppetry, from enormous and intricate sets to manuscripts of plays to the puppets themselves that were used to entertain the family.  It was really interesting to see, but a little weird, too.

 In front of the manor stood a HUGE and visibly ancient tree.  Apparently it had been greatly damaged (along with a lot of the other trees and plant life in the garden) during horrible storms a few years ago.  Restorations were going on all over the garden, including these giant ropes systems used to support the tree in its efforts to remain upright.

 The manor lead out into more impressive gardens, including a number of huge ponds filled with lily pads and surrounded by beautiful flowers.  It's hard to imagine that this all used to belong to one family!

Despite all the set-backs along the way, we had a beautiful day and saw some amazing things on Isola Madre.  We happily boarded the ferry, and, of course, had to finish the trip with a boat-beer! 

We arrived back in Stresa, got a little snack of bread and cheese, and made a record-time trek to the train station.  We successfully caught both of our trains home to Novara (which was no small feat) and walked flawlessly back to the apartment, ready for dinner with a hard-worked Luke.  We walked to our other favorite restaurant in Novara, Tre Lanterne, which ensured a phenomenal seafood antipasto, good seafood pasta for the girls and more pizza for the boys, resulting in another amazing dinner in Italy. After acquiring some much-needed gelato, Luke and I went to bed thankful that we had such amazing and fun friends who had come to visit us.  Thanks for making the trip, Lowell and Renee!