Domenica 6 settembre
Lake Maggiore in the last rays of light after the sun had set behind the mountains, on our way back to Stresa
For our last day in Stresa, we thought it was only fitting to explore Lago Maggiore a little more, so we paid the huge sum of 35 euro each to go on an all-day excursion, taking the Maggiore Express - which is a small and relatively slow electric railway called 'Vigezzina-Centovalli' that takes almost 2 hours for the journey - from Domodossola in Italy to Locarno in Switzerland, at the northernmost Swiss end of the lake, and a return 3 hour trip by ferry back to Stresa - so not exactly an express but certainly a wonderful experience!
On this picturesque train journey, the little train climbed up the mountain, through the Valle Viggezo from 257m asl at Domodossola, taking us over steep gorges with waterfalls and fast mountain streams and through the verdant deciduous forests of the Parco Nazionale Della Val Grande, past quaint mountain villages such as Santa Maria Maggiore at 830m asl, close to stone cottages with shingle roofs and Swiss-style decoration on verandahs, and we were excited to see the huge ice-covered glacial peak of Monte Rosa , which at 4634 m asl, is the highest peak in the region, and forms the watershed between northern and southern Europe.
Monte Rosa, this shot taken from the train, can be seen in the background!
As we were crossing the border into Switzerland, we were told to take our passports, but were not required to present them at any time!
On the last part of the journey, through the Centovalli down to Locarno at 192m asl, we got talking to a lovely elderly Swiss German man. Who speaks 6 languages plus a smattering of a couple more, who had worked in Australia as an engineer in Ahrnem Land 40 years ago - he recognised our Aussie accents!
When we arrived in Locarno, we were surprised ago find it very quiet with few people in the old town square, apart from in the cafes and restaurants, until we realised it was Sunday and, like other places we had been, no shops were open!
After a wander along the quiet streets of the Old Town, we decided to take the funicular to the viewing area on th hill overlooking Locarno. It cost only 7.20 Swiss francs and we were able to pay with euro, 7.20 also, which was lucky!
Near the top is the beautiful Santuario Madonna del Sasso, Orselina, ' Madonna on the rock' , an important place of pilgrimage for the Francescan order.
A very sacred place
The pretty pink and white facade of the monastery.
We sat in the sun while sitting on a bench by the lake shore, enjoying he view, then boarded the one and only ferry back to Stresa, at 4.15pm, for the long slow and relaxing trip back to Stresa, passing by some gorgeous villages on the lake, such as Canobbio .....
Behind Baveno below, you can see the scar on the mountain side of the granite and marble mines - apparently the marble from this area is that used to repair the Duomo in Milan!
At the end of a lovely but long day, we were finally back at the hotel at 7.45pm, for a simple dinner of leftovers (last of the big spenders!) on our balcony consisting of bread, cheese, cherry tomatoes, bottled grilled capsicum and tuna, washed down with the last of the sparkling white we started the night before- we couldn't buy any salad as the shops were closed!
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