Ascona and the more

As promised....we would be spending another night in Cannobio...but we would be exploring the Swiss side today....first stop, the picturesque village called Ascona, car-free old town...yay. The houses are just beautiful, again, all colourful just on the lake-side, just a beautiful sight. There is not too many shops but quite a few restaurants and cafes. We however, just strolled around and enjoyed the views.

Ascona
Ascona
Ascona
Ascona
Kim and Sofia in Ascona
After the beautiful Ascona...time to make our way through Locarno to Madonna del Sasso church. We decided not to take the tram up but rather drive up with the car, we thought it might be easier with Sofia. Once we had parked the car we walked towards the church....well, the top....meaning...we had to descend around 100 stairs in order to actually reach the church...and that's the only way....(sofia was sleeping, so kim and i actually carried the pram and sofia down). The church was beautiful and we had a great view over the lake, well worth a visit.....
Madonna del Sasso church from the top
Outside Madonna del Sasso church
Inside Madonna del Sasso church
View from Madonna del Sasso church
Time for lunch.....we wanted to go to one of the typical restaurants known as a Grotto....now it is not what you might think of as a cave...but rather a restaurant that has granite tables and benches outside which are in fact underneath the vines....that is what is typically known as a Grotto. I did some research and it was recommended to rather try a Grotto outside Locarno and the one that was mentioned was in a village called Verscio, the Grotto was called Pedemonte. We found it...and it looked beautiful...just wow...i mean the entire structure was made from this granite stone found from the mountains nearby...let me share some pics...
Grotto
Grotto Pedemonte (and our car in the background)
Where we sat
The traditional food is risotto, rabbit, polenta....because it was lunch time...kim and i decided to share the rabbit with polenta and a salad.....the food was ok...nothing to rave about...the rabbit was a little bit tough. The salad i was disappointed, in Switzerland normally salads are amazing cause they have these amazing salad dressings, this salad was not even dressed, so i was disappointed, the bread though...exactly how it should be...we got so full on the bread, such a crispy rind...the real farmer bread, just absoloutely amazing....
Bread, local beer and local wine
Polenta with rabbit
We decided we wanted to try the dessert cause it sounded interesting....grapes, covered with ice-cream and grappa.....it was a nice idea...simple...but we enjoyed it. Would we hurry back to this place...no...switzerland is rather expensive and in all honesty, the food was nothing special. The atmosphere was nice, but the food nothing spectacular. I was a little bit disapponted in the rabbit and i was hopeing i would have another chance to try...so that i could compare.
After that we did some wine tasting at a commercial place and in the evening we went to our usual place for an aperitivo in Cannobio. Again, cheese and local salami were served accompanied for me with a glass of prosecco and kim a glass of red wine.
Afterwards a stroll home where we found a local spot called "Ci vediamo" where we had some dinner....we shared a caprese and a milanese panini...nothing spectacular at all, i would definitely not go back. In fact the only reason we chose it in the first place was because the name appealed to us and we wanted to have a quick bite because Sofia was tired, but i definitely would not recommend, in fact, the mozzarella was not even fresh, it was the pizza mozzarella....that i must say...i have NEVER had that Italy, so i was extremly upset, disappointed and shocked...but anyway...moving on....we had a good day and even the terrible mozzarella could not change that.....tomorrow would be another day and we would move from Lago di Maggiore to Lago di Lugano. For now...cheerio.

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Wedding time.....my baby sister's wedding

Image
Oh my word....my sister, who wanted to be a nun (inspired by the movie Sister Act), is getting married....and to a guy that suites her perfectly.....we started getting reAdy around lunch time...make up artist, Victor Ortega, was flown in from Manila. He did my sister's, my mom's and my makeup....but now a few steps back...this wedding pre- celebration started on Wednesday night with a Swiss family dinner, Thursday night a pub crawl and Friday night a close family (Aboitiz and Bucher) at a Spanish tapas place (where the food was amazing...first time i tried nero paella)....but to the pub crawl we get later..... Nero Paella Lechon So....the make up artist was fabulous.....he did an amazing job, he also did the hair for the three of us...the other brides maides' make up and hair was done by his entourage.....here a pic of us getting ready for the big event.... My sister and Victor Victor and me I loved how subtle he did it...and then time for pics with t...
Read more

Hong kong

Image
So, lets do this blog a little different....when you go to Hong Kong, this is my top 10 highlights, things i think you must do (not any particular order): 1. Junk boat cruise (1 hour) 2. Dim sums at Maxims Palace City Hall 3. Deep Fried Pork Bun at Tim Ho Wan 4. Shopping (not neccessarily to buy but just to see) 5. Flute bar in Soho (such a variety of cocktails) 6. Armani Prive bar (rooftop bar) 7. Tram to Victoria Peak 8. Lamma island and of course that includes the hike and seafood 9. Under the bridge crab (garlic crab) 10. Nightmarket with eating local food which includes 1000 year old egg So...now some of those i have done this time in Hong Kong and some i did last time.....so lets do this way..im going to split my experience in Hong Kong in 2 parts, otherwise this blog will be endless.....but im gonna go through all top 10 attractions.... Number 1: Junk boat cruise.....they leave from both the Kowloon side (always on the half of the hour, for example 16:30...
Read more

Podere il Casale

Image
Beautiful place near Monticchiello in the Southern Tuscany. My parents, together with Mutti and Sofia went there whilst Kim and I were in Corsica. They raved about it, stating that it was Swiss owned and they met the couple who owns and runs it. They are actively involved and so are their children. Their food is produced on the farm, they are famous for their Pecorino cheese. They also offer Pizza and bread courses, camping etc etc....in fact i was really looking forward to visiting this place. They have outdoor and indoor seating but i must say the outdoor seating cannot be compared to the indoor hall. The outside is quaint, picturesque and has breath-taking views. There is quite a long dirt road following up to Podere il Casale....its not so easily found. The sign at the entrance is also not too good. Once we parked a beautiful sign welcomed us....let me share a pic... Podere il Casale As mentioned the place was quaint and picturesque with beautiful laid tables....and a fabulous vi...
Read more