Sondrio – Italy

“The air was soft, the stars so fine, the promise of every cobbled alley so great, that I thought I was in a dream.”

Jack Kerouac

It’s a strange feeling leaving a place you visit often. Not just the village, but the apartment. It’s easier to leave knowing you’ll be back.

I slept well with less alcohol.

It is drizzling when we wake up, and I sense a chance to skip the run. Shell is having none of it.

Another 5 km, same breathtaking views.

We stop on the way home to bring our heart rates down. We discuss the sadness of leaving, combined with the excitement of a new place.

I get distracted by some moss. Shell gives me a nudge, and it is time to move on.

Home for breakfast. We are short on eggs and have a surplus of bacon.

Three coffees and we are packed and ready to go.

It’s a 6 1/2 hour drive, and there is nothing worth writing about.

As we approach Sondrio, we turn off and climb the steepest, narrowest road I have ever encountered. Climb and climb with a sheer drop on one side. We miss our turn and hit the tiny village of Triasso. The only place in the last few kilometers to turn around.

Our place is Ca’ Barroni Agriresort. A former animal shelter cut into the steep mountainside. It is stunning. We are surrounded by terraced vineyards and look across Sondrio to the towering Dolomites. The river Mallero flows past to complete the vista.

“We are now in the mountains and they are in us, kindling enthusiasm, making every nerve quiver, filling every pore and cell of us.”

John Muir

We head down the pass of dread to get some dinner and wine. A feat in itself with closed roads, one way streets, and roadworks. Much reversing, a few near misses.

We eat our pizza and drink a beer overlooking the view.

I am not sure if I will drink wine tonight.

I read and watch the sun change the colour on the mountains.

Another long drive tomorrow.