We arrived back on Anchorage on Saturday, September 17. Good flight.
Thanks to all you, dear Readers!
Below:
One of my favorite photos - the giant lily pads at the botanical garden in Padua.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Home, Dear Readers
Saturday, September 17
We arrived back on Anchorage on Saturday, September 17. Good flight.
Thanks to all you, dear Readers!
Below:
One of my favorite photos - the giant lily pads at the botanical garden in Padua.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
We arrived back on Anchorage on Saturday, September 17. Good flight.
Thanks to all you, dear Readers!
Below:
One of my favorite photos - the giant lily pads at the botanical garden in Padua.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Greetings from Frankfurt
Friday, Sep 16
Got up at 5:30 am to catch the bus to the Bergamo Airport. Arrived at Frankfurt-Hahn on time on RyanAir. Whenever a RyanAir flight arrives on time a bugle sounds over the p.a. system.
We had anticipated meeting our friends, Pete and Sarah, in Frankfurt. They were in Europe to support Pete's son, Harlow, who was doing a TransAlpine race.
The four of us had actually met at the Bergamo airport en route to Frankfurt. Once in Frankfurt, We checked into our hotel and went off to sightsee We were able to walk to the Alte Stadt, the old part of town. While walking by the river, we saw some young men being arrested for some kind of sit-on About 25 of them were sitting on the grass. Police in riot gear were all around. One police officer called out about 3 or 4 names and young men stood up and were handcuffed and taken to a paddy wagon. We are still not sure why. The police then told the rest of the still-sitting crowd to disperse - and they did.
The old Catholic Dom - or cathedral - had some incredible altar pieces. Very Gothik. The church was heavily damaged in WW 2, and has been reconstructed. The interior walls look like brick, but the surface has been painted to look like brick.
We also visited the Lutheran Cathedral-shown below - candles.
Lots of things happening in the "Zeil"- Frankfurt's big shopping area next to the Alte Stadt. This is a huge pedestrian zone and there street vendors and performance artists galore, in addition to the regular shops and indoor mall. The architecture is very modernistic and we checked out the multi-story mall which looks like a geometric structure twisting in on itself.
Photos below:
l to r - John and our friends Sarah and Pete at the Frankfurt-Hahn Airport.
Getting off the plane at Frankfurt-Hahn.
Lunch on the Zeil- we found a great market and got picnic food to eat on a bench.
In the background, the group, Zeitlos, rocks out. They are on Facebook - they are great!
The Alte Stadt - the Old Town.
Candles in St. Paul's Church.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Got up at 5:30 am to catch the bus to the Bergamo Airport. Arrived at Frankfurt-Hahn on time on RyanAir. Whenever a RyanAir flight arrives on time a bugle sounds over the p.a. system.
We had anticipated meeting our friends, Pete and Sarah, in Frankfurt. They were in Europe to support Pete's son, Harlow, who was doing a TransAlpine race.
The four of us had actually met at the Bergamo airport en route to Frankfurt. Once in Frankfurt, We checked into our hotel and went off to sightsee We were able to walk to the Alte Stadt, the old part of town. While walking by the river, we saw some young men being arrested for some kind of sit-on About 25 of them were sitting on the grass. Police in riot gear were all around. One police officer called out about 3 or 4 names and young men stood up and were handcuffed and taken to a paddy wagon. We are still not sure why. The police then told the rest of the still-sitting crowd to disperse - and they did.
The old Catholic Dom - or cathedral - had some incredible altar pieces. Very Gothik. The church was heavily damaged in WW 2, and has been reconstructed. The interior walls look like brick, but the surface has been painted to look like brick.
We also visited the Lutheran Cathedral-shown below - candles.
Lots of things happening in the "Zeil"- Frankfurt's big shopping area next to the Alte Stadt. This is a huge pedestrian zone and there street vendors and performance artists galore, in addition to the regular shops and indoor mall. The architecture is very modernistic and we checked out the multi-story mall which looks like a geometric structure twisting in on itself.
Photos below:
l to r - John and our friends Sarah and Pete at the Frankfurt-Hahn Airport.
Getting off the plane at Frankfurt-Hahn.
Lunch on the Zeil- we found a great market and got picnic food to eat on a bench.
In the background, the group, Zeitlos, rocks out. They are on Facebook - they are great!
The Alte Stadt - the Old Town.
Candles in St. Paul's Church.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
The Last Gelato
Here is a photo of our last gelato of trip - in Bergamo.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Arco - a rock climbing Mecca
Thursday, September 15 continued
We left the Marmoleda and the war museum and arrived in Arco about 3:00 pm. We had come down out of the mountains and it was definitely warmer.
We changed clothes in the car. At the Marmoleda we had on our layers and I wore a hat and gloves. There was a cold breeze blowing as we went up the mountain in the lift at 9:00 am. Now we were among palm trees. Out came the sandals and sun hat!
There are lots of bicyclists in Arco, but the town had a medieval feel and tiny streets. There is a lake nearby in addition to the rock climbing area, and the town was bustling with young people and lots of activity. There were an incredible my number of gear shops, bike shops, and outdoor clothing stores. There is also a lovely book store with a reasonable selection of books in English and German, and the most complete collection of Lonely Planet travel books (in Italian) I have ever seen. They went on for shelves and shelves- pick a country, it was there.
There are churches, of course, including a tiny 16th century church dedicated to Santo Giuseppe(St. Joseph) which was right across from a gelato shop. And there is an enormous castle on the hill overlooking the town; it dates from the 500's and Emperor Theodoric.
As we drove from Arco we passed by the enormous lake and all the people enjoying a variety of water sports. Then onto the autostrada and Bergamo.
After returning the rental car at the Bergamo airport, we took the shuttle into town and found our hotel. Bergamo seemed full of banks! It also has a university and is the birthplace of the Italian composer, Donizetti.
Photos below:
Inside the church of Santo Giuseppe on Arco.
John rating gelato in Arco across from the church.
A cafe in Arco.
The Lancia rental car safely returned to Hertz at the Bergamo Airport.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
We left the Marmoleda and the war museum and arrived in Arco about 3:00 pm. We had come down out of the mountains and it was definitely warmer.
We changed clothes in the car. At the Marmoleda we had on our layers and I wore a hat and gloves. There was a cold breeze blowing as we went up the mountain in the lift at 9:00 am. Now we were among palm trees. Out came the sandals and sun hat!
There are lots of bicyclists in Arco, but the town had a medieval feel and tiny streets. There is a lake nearby in addition to the rock climbing area, and the town was bustling with young people and lots of activity. There were an incredible my number of gear shops, bike shops, and outdoor clothing stores. There is also a lovely book store with a reasonable selection of books in English and German, and the most complete collection of Lonely Planet travel books (in Italian) I have ever seen. They went on for shelves and shelves- pick a country, it was there.
There are churches, of course, including a tiny 16th century church dedicated to Santo Giuseppe(St. Joseph) which was right across from a gelato shop. And there is an enormous castle on the hill overlooking the town; it dates from the 500's and Emperor Theodoric.
As we drove from Arco we passed by the enormous lake and all the people enjoying a variety of water sports. Then onto the autostrada and Bergamo.
After returning the rental car at the Bergamo airport, we took the shuttle into town and found our hotel. Bergamo seemed full of banks! It also has a university and is the birthplace of the Italian composer, Donizetti.
Photos below:
Inside the church of Santo Giuseppe on Arco.
John rating gelato in Arco across from the church.
A cafe in Arco.
The Lancia rental car safely returned to Hertz at the Bergamo Airport.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
The Marmoleda
Thursday, September 15
Today our plan involved driving to the Marmoleda, then to the town of Arco where there is lots of rock climbing for a quick look around, then on to Bergamo where we had a hotel reservation. We were to catch our flight to Frankfurt early Friday morning from Bergamo Airport
From our albergo in Cancia we were very close to the Marmoleda, a huge massif dripping with a shrinking glacier. It is ringed by valleys and there are ski lifts that provide easy access at different points around the mountain. The receding glacier is in a state of rapid meltdown and has exposed many WW1 relics including firearms, equipment, and clothing. These mountains were bitterly contested between the Italians and the Austro-Hungarians.
We took a open mini-gondola- it holds 2 people standing for a 15 minute ride, to the Marmoleda Rifugio. From there hikers and mountaineers go further up the glacier to the summit of the peaks and from there can go along the ridge to another rifugio.
I started up toward the glacier with John; there were stairs cut into the rock face for part of the way. Then it got steeper with lots of loose rock. I decided to go back to the rifugio for a cup of tea. John hiked up to the glacier. There were lots of other hikers. That was one thing that struck us - just the sheer number of people given the time of year at all the hiking places we visited. John commented on the difference in population density at these areas versus Alaskan hiking trails - in Italy you really feel the crush of people. It must be incredible during the summer high season.
After John returned from his hike, he was standing to order coffee and was suddenly asked by a young German woman to watch her one-year old while she ran outside. She thought she had dropped her wallet getting off the lift. I did not realize John was back and looked up when I heard him saying,"Well, how are you?" in a different tone of voice than normal. Dylan was the baby and he was very sweet. All's well that ends well, and the mother came running in again, rifled through the baby's bag and found her wallet.
We took the lift Dow - which was a bit of a process. It does not stop, it merely slows down for you to jim on and the attendant secures the gate. Getting on was mo problem. I used to jump onto moving cablecars all the time when I lived in San Francisco. Getting off was a little trickier, and on the ride up, I was very glad for the young Italian guy who caught me as I lost my balance. By the trip down, I was old hand and made it off just fine. John has the sure-footedness of a mountain goat.
Next stops: the WW1 museum and Arco.
Photos below:
John and baby Dylan.
The rifugio.
The lift stop.
The lift.
The war museum.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Today our plan involved driving to the Marmoleda, then to the town of Arco where there is lots of rock climbing for a quick look around, then on to Bergamo where we had a hotel reservation. We were to catch our flight to Frankfurt early Friday morning from Bergamo Airport
From our albergo in Cancia we were very close to the Marmoleda, a huge massif dripping with a shrinking glacier. It is ringed by valleys and there are ski lifts that provide easy access at different points around the mountain. The receding glacier is in a state of rapid meltdown and has exposed many WW1 relics including firearms, equipment, and clothing. These mountains were bitterly contested between the Italians and the Austro-Hungarians.
We took a open mini-gondola- it holds 2 people standing for a 15 minute ride, to the Marmoleda Rifugio. From there hikers and mountaineers go further up the glacier to the summit of the peaks and from there can go along the ridge to another rifugio.
I started up toward the glacier with John; there were stairs cut into the rock face for part of the way. Then it got steeper with lots of loose rock. I decided to go back to the rifugio for a cup of tea. John hiked up to the glacier. There were lots of other hikers. That was one thing that struck us - just the sheer number of people given the time of year at all the hiking places we visited. John commented on the difference in population density at these areas versus Alaskan hiking trails - in Italy you really feel the crush of people. It must be incredible during the summer high season.
After John returned from his hike, he was standing to order coffee and was suddenly asked by a young German woman to watch her one-year old while she ran outside. She thought she had dropped her wallet getting off the lift. I did not realize John was back and looked up when I heard him saying,"Well, how are you?" in a different tone of voice than normal. Dylan was the baby and he was very sweet. All's well that ends well, and the mother came running in again, rifled through the baby's bag and found her wallet.
We took the lift Dow - which was a bit of a process. It does not stop, it merely slows down for you to jim on and the attendant secures the gate. Getting on was mo problem. I used to jump onto moving cablecars all the time when I lived in San Francisco. Getting off was a little trickier, and on the ride up, I was very glad for the young Italian guy who caught me as I lost my balance. By the trip down, I was old hand and made it off just fine. John has the sure-footedness of a mountain goat.
Next stops: the WW1 museum and Arco.
Photos below:
John and baby Dylan.
The rifugio.
The lift stop.
The lift.
The war museum.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Another hike in the Dolomites
Wednesday, September 14
Today we drove to the town of Palavera to start a hike up to the Rifugio A Sonino, up toward the Civetta, a famous rock face. The trail was very steep and rocky, but amazingly we saw bicycle riders!
Two young guys from Germany were biking, often carrying, their bikes along the trail. We noticed they had heavy backpacks, no panniers. I asked one of the fellows why no panniers. He explained in excellent English how panniers made it difficult to handle the bike, put the balance off, and he said, "Besides, it doesn't look cool!"
On the way down, we switched to a less steep route. From there we drove to Rifugio Staulanza, a Rifugio accessible from the road. A German couple we met the day before had started here and hiked to Rifugio Venezia. The great part of starting from this direction is the possibility of taking a brief detour to see dinosaur footprints. This Rifugio seemed less charming and less welcoming, perhaps because it was so close to the road system.
After a coffee, we started our drive up through the mountains toward villages of Arraba and Cancia. Mountain biking and hiking are big summer activities, but the area is even better known for winter skiing. The network of trails, skilifts, and huts goes on for miles. You can link up a multi-day journey without ever going down into a village.
People were also parasailing and using the lifts to get themselves to various mountains to launch. We thought about overnighting in Arraba and stopped to walk around. John saw someone handing out yellow flyers at the cafes. As we came around a corner, we found one posted to the side of a building with today's date. I knew enough Italian to make out that it was a health advisory about the water in the town- it was contaminated and the authorities were taking action. People were advised against using the water for food preparation. At that point, we got back in the car and drove on.
In Cancia we found an Albergo and stopped for the night.
Below
A view in the Dolomites
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Today we drove to the town of Palavera to start a hike up to the Rifugio A Sonino, up toward the Civetta, a famous rock face. The trail was very steep and rocky, but amazingly we saw bicycle riders!
Two young guys from Germany were biking, often carrying, their bikes along the trail. We noticed they had heavy backpacks, no panniers. I asked one of the fellows why no panniers. He explained in excellent English how panniers made it difficult to handle the bike, put the balance off, and he said, "Besides, it doesn't look cool!"
On the way down, we switched to a less steep route. From there we drove to Rifugio Staulanza, a Rifugio accessible from the road. A German couple we met the day before had started here and hiked to Rifugio Venezia. The great part of starting from this direction is the possibility of taking a brief detour to see dinosaur footprints. This Rifugio seemed less charming and less welcoming, perhaps because it was so close to the road system.
After a coffee, we started our drive up through the mountains toward villages of Arraba and Cancia. Mountain biking and hiking are big summer activities, but the area is even better known for winter skiing. The network of trails, skilifts, and huts goes on for miles. You can link up a multi-day journey without ever going down into a village.
People were also parasailing and using the lifts to get themselves to various mountains to launch. We thought about overnighting in Arraba and stopped to walk around. John saw someone handing out yellow flyers at the cafes. As we came around a corner, we found one posted to the side of a building with today's date. I knew enough Italian to make out that it was a health advisory about the water in the town- it was contaminated and the authorities were taking action. People were advised against using the water for food preparation. At that point, we got back in the car and drove on.
In Cancia we found an Albergo and stopped for the night.
Below
A view in the Dolomites
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Friday, September 16, 2011
More photos from the Dolomites
Tuesday, Sep 13
A tarn - a lake in the Dolomites - that is shrinking. Postcards of the lake show a much larger body of water.
Taking a break.
Some scree on part of the trail.
A small set of buildings along one point of the trail. There was an old man here who sold us coffee in shot glasses. He also offered us Schnapps to put in the coffee. When we declined, he patted me on the head and smiled.
The cows next to the buildings above.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
A tarn - a lake in the Dolomites - that is shrinking. Postcards of the lake show a much larger body of water.
Taking a break.
Some scree on part of the trail.
A small set of buildings along one point of the trail. There was an old man here who sold us coffee in shot glasses. He also offered us Schnapps to put in the coffee. When we declined, he patted me on the head and smiled.
The cows next to the buildings above.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
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