italia – GOING NINETY MILES

I loved this the moment I saw it. Ever since moving to Europe nine (REALLY? NINE?!!? wow) years ago I have been in a whirlwind of languages. First German, then Spanish, sometimes French – And I have loved every moment. But more and more sometimes people ask me what does this mean in English and I have no answer. Sometimes things are just, well, untranslatable.

Enjoy and read. I love all of these but my favorites are:

1. Waldeinsamkeit – I do love that feeling of aloneness when you are in the woods. So peaceful. And sometimes frightening.

2. Sobremesa – The Spanish completely and totally love just hanging out and talking for hours upon end. Sometimes I love it and sometimes it drives me crazy.

3. Dépaysement – Oh, I know this one. Too well.

4. Mangata – I love the mangata. So very beautiful and calming.

Save

Ahhhhh, Italia! What a lovely place to spend my birthday. And the LEFAY Resort and Spa at Lago Di Garda was the perfect spot for a few days of relaxation.

After driving through vineyards on the steep hills and lemon trees in backyards we finally arrived at the resort. Dinner is included in the room price so we skeedaddled into the room, freshened up and sat our tired butts in our dinner chairs on my day of birth. We ordered Campari (on the rocks for The German and with OJ for me), our dinner and a crisp bottle of Riesling. The drinks were delicious, the dinner, not so much. But that is what I expect from hotels that include dinner. Actually, the next day, dinner was pretty good, but the last day, it was back to boring.

Saturday night as we came down the stairs from the restaurant I heard singing and I yelled (not really) “karaoke!” I was kidding of course, it was a lady with a beautiful voice to entertain us for a few hours. But I still joked to put quarters down for my turn to be next.

The rest of the days slid by in tranquility. The hotel has 2 swimming pools, a hot tub and a spa area with four saunas available for no charge for hotel guests. And outside there are several paths for exploring, running, walking with areas set up for meditation. Naturally, the path I stumbled upon led us to the animals! They have a small farm with goats, chickens and possibly a turkey. Watch out Mr. Turkey, it’s almost Thanksgiving. Oh wait, you’re in Italy, stop worrying.

Here are a few more pics from our stay. I love our jumping pictures!