A few days unplanned blog hiatus thanks to typical January germs, medical appointments, and joy of joys, snow. The kind of stuff that adds an extra 40 snow shovelling minutes to each morning (how I miss the snow blower thing we had in Denmark), as well as making the usual drive into work a mildly white-knuckle one. And each day I sit and watch it half disappear as the temperature rises, knowing full well that it will be back again the following morning, when we can start the whole thing again… Exhausting!
Unsurprisingly, this combination of things has me harking back to sunnier climes, warmer times, and somewhere I haven’t actually told you about yet (if you haven’t guessed from the title) – Sirmione…
Right at the bottom of Lake Garda, it was THE wealthy Roman holiday destination by all accounts, and a couple of thousand years later, it’s still massively popular, although nowadays mostly with day-trippers from Verona coached in to wander its compact cobbled streets, and closely inspect the 12th century Rocca Scaligera (the Castle that dominates Sirmione’s skyline, and the cover of many a Lake Garda Guide book).
It’s not huge, and I don’t think that many people actually stay there, so to enjoy it for yourself I would suggest you arrive early, inspect the castle whilst it’s still reasonably emptyi-ish (spending time to take in the tapering views of Sirmione itself from the very top)…
Follow that with a trip out on to the lake in one of the many nearby vast polished beautiful boats to enjoy the vista. Come back, find a shady spot to while away an hour or two, or if you’re in need of some real relaxation pay a visit to the Thermal Baths, followed by a cheeky Aperol somewhere perhaps? Then once the clouds of dust from the departing coaches have settled, wander back in to town and enjoy a quieter dinner at one of the countless restaurants (it’s also well known for gelato!)
Sadly, we didn’t make it to the Catullus Grotto that Sirmione is equally famous for, but I think our friends did. Get a few days off in this part of the world, and inevitably you find out on a much later date that you were somewhere at the same time as someone else! Of course they could just not be telling us that they are going!
Back on track next week hopefully!
Elinor Hill says
Oh yes, I can certainly say it’s beautiful there. We went a couple of years back on an extended work trip and took the kids (Italians love kids even on a work trip) and feel in love with the place. We stayed right at the very end and were treated like royalty – it was memory making stuff.
Lovely post Emma.
Elinor x
Emma says
Thank you Elinor, glad to bring back happy memories for you! :) xx
Cass@frugalfamily says
Oh, it’s such a beautiful place. I visited here lots of years ago and would love to take the kids back x x
Emma says
Thanks so much Cass! :) xx
brooke says
I am afraid we won’t make it back to Lake Garda despite having loved it! We kept saying we’d go back and do the south end…we never did.
Emma says
One day Brooke, one day… Thank you! :)
Mammasaurus says
I love the blue skies but am also jealous of the snow – feels like we are the only ones left out of everyone I see online not to have any!
Emma says
I can send you some of ours, we won’t see the end of it until March I guess… :D Thanks Annie! :)
Ruth says
Ooh look at those gorgeous blue skies and bright buildings. We’re having a shocker of a summer here – very grey and wet so your photos have cheered me up no end!
Emma says
Thank you Ruth… Hope the sun comes out for you all soon! :)
Emma says
what beautiful colours, I long for sunshine too we are just starting to think about where to head this year.
Emma says
Thanks Emma! Happy holiday choosing! :)
Anya from Older Single Mum and The Healer says
The colour of that sky is simply amazing. I’d never heard of Sirmione but you (and Mari) have certainly made me include it in my plans to tour Italy one day – fascinating as well as beautiful :)
Emma says
Thanks Anya, it’s a really lovely little place! :)
Polka Dot Family says
I adore your staircase photo, I’m a sucker for a good staircase. Beautiful place to visit and your photos really make me want to hop on a plane.
Emma says
Thank you, glad you like it! :)
Trish says
I’m just about managing one blog post every week or so at the moment – it initially felt odd not posting frequently but now I’m realising the world doesn’t stop turning just because my little corner of the internet is quiet!
We had a short visit there when staying in Bardolino amd thought it was lovely – mind you, so was every town we visited. Need to return to Italy, I’ve missed it.
Emma says
Thank you Trish, you know I have OCD about these types of things though! :D It is so beautiful around there, it’s hard to find somewhere that’s not nice…
Marianne says
I love Sirmione and never tire of returning. I bought some of my treasured ceramics from the shops dotted up the peninsula and I adore visiting the Roman ruins at the top. Did you know Sirmione is also famous for its water and has a world famous spa?
Gorgeous post, you had me at the word Sirmione :D
Emma says
We need to go back and stay longer there! I loved the last Lake Garda Thermal Baths we went too, so would love to visit the one at Sirmione too! Thank you! :) x
Midlife Singlemum says
Lovely to see a bit of sunny weather if only in your photos. (Although it’s quite sunny here atm just cold with it.) I wish you all better. February tomorrow – almost the end of winter.
Emma says
True enough R, I will miss these cold days in the height of summer no doubt! Thank you! :) x
Sarah Scott says
Hi Emma! This post made me smile so much. We had a fantastic family holiday in Sirmionie a few years ago. It’s snowy and cold here too, nice memories to hark back to.
Emma says
Thanks Sarah, it’s a gorgeous place isn’t it? I am biased about most places Italian! :D
Karolina says
I have been there recently….the lake is really amazing!
Karolina
Emma says
Thanks Karolina! :)
mary @asturiandiary says
Oh my word, poor you! 40 minutes of shovelling snow does NOT sound fun :-( At least you have your beautiful summer memories to keep you warm. They keep threatening snow here too – there’s already a lot up high but so far we’ve escaped. Still, maybe if I get snowed in I’ll buckle down to some blogging and blog-reading like I’ve been meaning to for ages ;-) X
Emma says
Thank you Mary, thankfully the worst day was on Monday, and it got better and better from there (apart from a blizzard I had to drive in on Friday – petrifying!)… Hope all is well, and hope you get just the right amount of snow for a couple of days of catching up! :) x