by train to Domodossolla

Friday morning Pauline and I decided to take the scenic train to Domodossola and spend a few hours exploring before we had to catch a return train back to Locarno. First stop was Empirio at the Locarno train station to use the free internet access there and to post a few blogs and of course to enjoy a cappuccino. After we enjoyed our coffee, we purchased out train tickets and headed down to the track. It is about a 1 3/4 hour train ride that starts by heading out through the Val Vigezzo, a very scenic river valley. At the head of the river you cross into Italy and head down into the valley where Domodossola is located. And when I say down, I mean it. It was quite steep, the train squealing all the way down. The views of the Alps as we descended were incredible.  Once in Domodossola we just started walking down any interesting street that we came to. Within about 15 minutes we found ourselves in the heart of the oldest part of town. Beautiful buildings, narrow roads, dogs running free everywhere and countless balconies with flower boxes just waiting for us to take pictures of.

We quickly found the piazza that was the center of the old section and were pleasantly surprised to see a vegetable market set up there. They were just closing up but we got to see many of the things that they offered. Across the piazza there was a small sidewalk cafe where we stopped for lunch and another cappuccino.There were a few others there and we were also joined by several pigeons who sat on the table next to us and many dogs running all over the piazza. We really enjoy going to the cafes around here and seeing people bring their dogs in with them. The dogs are always well behaved and wag their tails like crazy when meeting up with other dogs. Another enjoyable thing was the number of people who ride bikes everywhere they go. And you very rarely see a bike locked up. Every town has large bike racks that are usually full and you always see one or two in front of a store or cafe.

After lunch we spent the rest of our time wandering down the narrow roads and alleys, enjoying the sights and smells of the area. Soon it was time to head back to catch the train to Locarno. The train ride back was quiet and relaxing, except for once when I was taking a picture out the door and a woman standing there said 'It certainly is beautiful'. When I said 'yes, it's heavenly' she looked at me and said, 'Oh my gosh, you speak English!' Twenty minutes later we were still speaking English.... She was traveling with some friends from Vancouver and hiking in the various places they visited. It is not hard to get around here without speaking the local languages (German, Italian and French). Most people, if you are patient and pleasant are more than willing to work with you to communicate, but it sure would be nice to be able to converse with them in their own tongue.

After arriving in Locarno we had to figure out how the bus system works since we had decided that we wanted to get all the way back to the house using public transportation. We managed to buy our tickets from the vending machine, get on the right bus and get off at the right stop! At least at this point it was all down hill from here.....  For those of you with strong stomachs I will be posting a video later of a portion of the bus ride home.

When we got back, Mom and Dad had fired up the wood fired pizza oven outside and had all the fixings ready to go. We enjoyed our pizzas and wine out on the patio and all headed off to bed early for some much needed rest.