Sirmione

Slow getting up. L went for an early run along the beautiful, deserted lakeside but had trouble finding a way back in to the campsite owing to locked gates!


We decided to take the tripper boat to Sirmione, a honeypot destination in this part of Lake Garda. The ferry doesn't run often during the day, so we took a lunchtime boat that would return about 4pm,  thinking that 3 hours of tourist hot-spot would be about enough.

We walked to the ferry pontoon and had a coffee while waiting. The rather old fashioned boat was surprisingly full.


It was pleasant sitting up top under a shade, watching the blue lake pass by, for 40 minutes, but it was very hazy and a bit soporific.

Arriving at Sirmione was like being tumbled into an ants' nest. It was rammed full of tourists, ice cream shops, pizzerias and tat shops. 


We visited two beautiful, tiny churches and a lovely quiet side street where the houses have ornate ceramic plaques for house names, all by the same artist. 




And we ventured into an old fort with 2 drawbridges and an astonishing inner harbour or'dock'.


That was enough sightseeing. The rest of the time was taken up by eating our own sandwiches, a gigantic ice cream, or drinking coffee.


The return journey was quiet, N dozed off, and we were glad to get back to the campsite for a cuppa and to briefly review the horrendous local election results before turning to our books and a healthy bit of escapism. 

We trotted off to the same pizza restaurant as last night for delicious home-made ravioli. Perfetto.





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