A few years ago I tried to get my husband to go on a trip to the Lake District in northern Italy. My husband is a second generation Italian American from Naples and Sicily. Go north? Fuhgeddaboutit! They don’t serve red sauce! Please? Well love wins every time and soon I was reserving a room in the venerable Villa d ‘Este on Lake Como. My husband and I decided that on this trip, in addition to doing the usual travel sites, to do the site trip “unusual” by Ellen and Clark Griswold. First was the Rio de la Leche, a 250 meter long river that flows white foam and water from mid-March to mid-October. And then it just dries. Then it was a 75 foot statue in the hills above Lake Maggiore of Cardinal San Carlo Borromeo. It took 83 years to build this thing. There isn’t much to see, but as you sweep the horizon, you see a castle towering over the lake. We head over and discover that it is a 13th century Roman castle filled with 17th and 18th century tapestries and the largest collection of BARBIE dolls in Italy. Now THAT was a surprise.
The biggest surprise awaited us back at the Villa. We had been so busy that we did not realize that the Village was preparing for its annual 4th of July party honoring the American soldiers who liberated them during WWII. They started this celebration in the late 1940s. Since we were unaware of the festivities, we were too late to sign up for their magnificent dinner pairing. So my husband and I ate at a local trattoria and returned to the Villa. From our balcony we had a magnificent view of the Villa and Lake Como. Around 9 pm an orchestra began to set up in the magnificent courtyard. We walked out onto our patio with a magnificent bottle of Chianti and watched them ride. Then we were transported back in time to the 1920s. The singers sang songs like It had to be You, He is not misbehaving, Y Old river. Then they went on to the 30s and 40s with the era of the big bands and crooners singing. They took us straight back to the 50’s with the Big Bopper and the jitterbug. While all this was happening, small rowboats were moving towards the center of the lake to mount a flotilla of fireworks. Meanwhile, the locals parked their vehicles on the mountain roads behind the Villa. You cannot imagine the beauty of the fireworks that are reflected in the lake and the surrounding mountain ranges. The fireworks lasted about 45 minutes. Meanwhile, local residents clapped, whistled and expressed their delight at the event. I have to consider tonight as one of my best travel memories. Oh, and I heard George Clooney is going to this event. Honey, I think a trip to Villa D ‘Este on the 4th of July would be perfect, don’t you think? Please?
