Every year on September's first Sunday there's the so called regata storica taking place in Venice.
It's one of the biggest annual events in the city and it has a long tradition: Even the very word "regatta" has its origin here.
It's a sunny day at the beginning of September when I'm cycling along the shore of Lake Como. Around here it's good use to have an extended midday break after lunch: From 1am onwards every work comes to an halt for at least two hours. People relax, bathe in the sun or just take a nap at home. Everything's calming down.
It's this midday break period when I pass Brienno, a small village located directly on the shore and home to only around 400 inhabitants. This place still has some kind of comfy, pre-industrial charme since it's been built on a steep slope and the traffic-heavy main road avoids it completely by tunneling around. I decide to lean my bicycle on a wall and explore this pleasantly chilly maze of winding, sunprotected alleys that have lanterns shining even at daytime. Around just a few corners you are in a small world of its own...
Fullscreen recommended. Wide-angle is distorting but brings out the intricate architecture quite well. Edit (September 2015): Youtube just muted the video, because it had some soothing Japanese piano music in it. Should replace it with a version that at least keeps the sound of my steps and the waves.
Above the main road there's even more to discover. I took a few pictures...
Day 20 to 24: The Alps from Lake Constance up to the Italian border. This time with a bit less text and a bit more slideshow, at least for the second half. I passed a small piece of Austria and also Liechtenstein at the beginning, but most of the rest is Switzerland.
Rugged rock faces, lush alms housing cows and their jingling bells, huge lakes and glaciers... Switzerland is beautiful. But if you plan to stay here for a little longer, you should bring a well-packed moneybag. Switzerland's living expenses are the tallest in all of Europe, only northern countries like Norway reach a similar level in some aspects. So I coudn't help but note down some of the food prices again, in order to compare them with the ones at home.
Time for the first microstate! With an area of barely 160 km² the principality is quite accurately just half as large than my hometown Dresden, not even really visible on a normal globe. Looking closer, there's a small slip of land between Switzerland and Austria, but what exactly is there behind? What does it look like over there, what's the difference to its neighbors and is there even enough space? Well have a look.
From Swabia back to Upper Bavaria and finally crossing the Allgau. Once again, way too many photos... And anyway: Damn, this post has gotten long. Quite an eventful section this time.
The Historical Regatta of Venice
Travelogue: Swiss Alps
The Liechtenstein Entry
Travelogue: Bavaria (2)
Watch the Weed Grow
