Notes from Bolsena - October 2008
A few quick notes from the journey...
Trips: We took a Medieval walking tour on our last day (Sunday) there to Castello Monaldeschi before leaving for Fiumicino the next day. Wonderful walk! It started from the Piazza San Rocco, up the stairs by Sartoria Alessia, and all the way up past Via de' Medici to the castle area. (You can read the details on this and other suggested walks in Fleur Kinson's guidebook "Bolsena - Everything You Need To Know".) Amazing views -- not to be missed by anyone visiting. Bar- il Castello was the only thing open up there on that day; nice little place to stop off for a break. Next time we'll check that out further. Day-tripped almost all along the lake; enjoyed Montefiascone the best outside of Bolsena. Would like to spend more time checking out Marta, maybe during a festa?
Restaurants: Visited Osteria Del Borgo Dentro (Corso Cavour) twice; excellent service (waiter even spoke some English, but we were keeping up in Italian reasonably well) and the food was VERY good, save for some overcooked agnello (which wasn't bad even so).The carpaccio di coregono was just dreamy. Went to La Tavernetta THREE times; had the giant pizzas once and assorted meat/pastas otherwise. The free limoncellos (my wife made me drink HERS, cruel mistress that she is) on top of a bottle of chardonnay were a nice touch. Very nice people there as well. One trip to Da Picchietto -- the server seemed strangely rushed for only having three tables -- but the food was delightful and we would certainly return. Twice (lunch) to La Sirenetta @ the lake; Mauro (owner) and his dog Tobi, a Yorkie mix, were superb hosts. Unbeatable view, and the octopus salad was EXQUISITE. Have to have the fried coregone next time.... Lunch at Pizzeria San Rocco (al taglio) was a nice little spot, and they gave us free keychains when I asked if they had a biglietto di visita. Otherwise, had some porchetta (WOW!!) in Montefiascone and general noshery about the lake. No culinary disappointments whatsoever, restaurant-wise. Supremely enjoyed the gelato at Gelateria Santa Cristina (of course) and at Blu Bar/Gelateria Sarchioni (Via Colesanti) -- the lady there was so nice that it became our almost-nightly hangout for dessert and people-watching.
Hotel: My concerns (from reading online reviews in advance) re the Le Naiadi (Viale Cadorna) were, it seems, not applicable... at least to us. (Again, THANK GOD for pre-trip language study!) Signora Teresa was indeed very accomodating to us, and tolerated my pidgin Italiano with what seemed to be genuine appreciation (and relief). The room was more than adequate for our needs; the balcony view (attached) was lovely, and the location was (usually) perfectly relaxing. The hoteliers seemed a bit stressed when dealing with some of the non-Italian speakers (tour groups and campers) who dined and toured there, but again were very kind and helpful to us. The only downside was breakfast; although mostly edible, the choice of "instant coffee" was a bit surprising and, quite honestly, undrinkable. (We went for juice, tea, and water instead.) We will either stay there on our return or the Hotel Columbus, which is a little closer to town. (Bolsena has almost no free parking to speak of.)
All in all, an excellent trip -- even better than we had hoped. We plan to holiday in Destin (Florida) this next year, and either return to Italy in 2010 or go to Japan (my wife's first visit, my second) and then return. Somewhere in there we hope to squeeze in (out?) a bambino/a perhaps, so time will tell.
Trips: We took a Medieval walking tour on our last day (Sunday) there to Castello Monaldeschi before leaving for Fiumicino the next day. Wonderful walk! It started from the Piazza San Rocco, up the stairs by Sartoria Alessia, and all the way up past Via de' Medici to the castle area. (You can read the details on this and other suggested walks in Fleur Kinson's guidebook "Bolsena - Everything You Need To Know".) Amazing views -- not to be missed by anyone visiting. Bar- il Castello was the only thing open up there on that day; nice little place to stop off for a break. Next time we'll check that out further. Day-tripped almost all along the lake; enjoyed Montefiascone the best outside of Bolsena. Would like to spend more time checking out Marta, maybe during a festa?
Restaurants: Visited Osteria Del Borgo Dentro (Corso Cavour) twice; excellent service (waiter even spoke some English, but we were keeping up in Italian reasonably well) and the food was VERY good, save for some overcooked agnello (which wasn't bad even so).The carpaccio di coregono was just dreamy. Went to La Tavernetta THREE times; had the giant pizzas once and assorted meat/pastas otherwise. The free limoncellos (my wife made me drink HERS, cruel mistress that she is) on top of a bottle of chardonnay were a nice touch. Very nice people there as well. One trip to Da Picchietto -- the server seemed strangely rushed for only having three tables -- but the food was delightful and we would certainly return. Twice (lunch) to La Sirenetta @ the lake; Mauro (owner) and his dog Tobi, a Yorkie mix, were superb hosts. Unbeatable view, and the octopus salad was EXQUISITE. Have to have the fried coregone next time.... Lunch at Pizzeria San Rocco (al taglio) was a nice little spot, and they gave us free keychains when I asked if they had a biglietto di visita. Otherwise, had some porchetta (WOW!!) in Montefiascone and general noshery about the lake. No culinary disappointments whatsoever, restaurant-wise. Supremely enjoyed the gelato at Gelateria Santa Cristina (of course) and at Blu Bar/Gelateria Sarchioni (Via Colesanti) -- the lady there was so nice that it became our almost-nightly hangout for dessert and people-watching.
Hotel: My concerns (from reading online reviews in advance) re the Le Naiadi (Viale Cadorna) were, it seems, not applicable... at least to us. (Again, THANK GOD for pre-trip language study!) Signora Teresa was indeed very accomodating to us, and tolerated my pidgin Italiano with what seemed to be genuine appreciation (and relief). The room was more than adequate for our needs; the balcony view (attached) was lovely, and the location was (usually) perfectly relaxing. The hoteliers seemed a bit stressed when dealing with some of the non-Italian speakers (tour groups and campers) who dined and toured there, but again were very kind and helpful to us. The only downside was breakfast; although mostly edible, the choice of "instant coffee" was a bit surprising and, quite honestly, undrinkable. (We went for juice, tea, and water instead.) We will either stay there on our return or the Hotel Columbus, which is a little closer to town. (Bolsena has almost no free parking to speak of.)
All in all, an excellent trip -- even better than we had hoped. We plan to holiday in Destin (Florida) this next year, and either return to Italy in 2010 or go to Japan (my wife's first visit, my second) and then return. Somewhere in there we hope to squeeze in (out?) a bambino/a perhaps, so time will tell.
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