A Day in Lugano (5/18)


Would you believe I’m starting my second night here and I still haven’t met the host?  It seems so weird to open your house to rentals but not have any contact with the people who are renting, not even through a hired receptionist. Oh well… it seems like a good place, and I was certainly comfortable last night.
 I started the day with no particular plans beyond getting some caffeine in my system. This particular place doesn’t serve breakfast, so I walked for a while until I found a place that would serve coffee and at least a roll. Thus fortified, I went on to look for an open-air market that apparently happens on Fridays. It turns out it’s mostly food - like a small farmers’ market - with a few other things. Since I have become used to a rather large Swiss breakfast, I decided to allow myself a cannoli. (This really is an Italian area.)  Yum! I sat and ate it by the lakeshore, and watched a machine that looked like a steam shovel in the front, and a waterwheel in the back.  It looked like it was cleaning the bottom of the lake near the shore.
Then I decided to walk along the lakeshore, which is exceptionally beautiful. I saw a church mentioned my guidebook. The building itself is really interesting, but there is a mural inside painted in the early 1500s that is exceptional. Very close to church is an art museum, which had a special exhibit on Picasso. I decided to check it out. It was mostly sketches and sculptures done across his entire career, or across his different periods. It really was interesting, and I’m glad I took the time to see it. The museum is right on the shore of lake and in the exhibit halls, there are huge glass windows facing the lake. What a view!
 I stopped for lunch at a little place along the lake, and had a tomato and mozzarella salad. It was fantastic! Then I turned around and went back in the other direction along the lake, and I took advantage of a boat trip that was about to start. The boat went to several points around the lake and the views were spectacular. There was a couple with a child about 14 months old whose accent sounded very familiar. It turns out they were from Philadelphia, and had come up to Lugano from Como, Italy. It’s interesting to me how few Americans I run into right now. Apparently, most Americans travel the summertime. That makes it fun to talk to the Americans I do meet. Out on the water it began to sprinkle, so we all ran for cover. It’s interesting. The clouds came in yesterday around 4 o’clock and they did the same thing today.
At the end of the trip, I got off the boat and kept walking towards the funicular I wanted to ride. That walk took me through a beautiful park and a small port area. I use the word, “port,” guardedly because it’s not a commercial port; it’s a recreational port. Yet it’s a port, not a marina. I finally reached the funicular, and went up the first of two trams or gondolas. Because of thunder and bit of lightning, the operator refused to take us on the second gondola the rest of the way to the top. I was disappointed, but I was able to see some pretty views in a park nearby.
 On the way back, I decided to stop at an “osteria” in the port for an early dinner. It was about 5:30, and I was told there would be no food until seven. So, I walked on back to the main part of town and dawdled a bit before sitting down at another lakeside restaurant for dinner. This time I had spaghetti with fruta di mare. By the way, I am relating food items today because what I’m eating is so very Italian. I decided I wanted to get back to my room early because I have a few things to do to be ready for an early train tomorrow.

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