Como!

While Roy, Caroline, Evan & Genevieve were in Europe, we decided to take a trip to Como, Italy.

 We took the train from Lausanne to Milan (3 hours) and then another a train from Milan to Como (about 40min) – and all in all we had a  pretty smooth journey. I was initially concerned that we would not be able to take our original travel route because our train was cancelled until midday of our scheduled departure due to a landslide. But thankfully they fixed the problem and we were able to travel as planned. The children were really well behaved on the train and we had a smooth journey except for the last train that was really full. We took a taxi to our great Air BnB apartment that Caroline found. After our Italian host met us and showed us all around in Italian (that was fun), we picked up some food from the store right below us (how convenient) and settled in for a quiet night at home.

On Friday we decided to take a furnicular up a little mountain to have a walk around, some food and enjoy some views of Como. This proved to be a really fun outing – we had a great meal of pasta with a very friendly waitress before deciding that a walk was in order. Genevieve was enjoying her new found walking freedom, so she was quite determined to walk and at one point decided her outfit was not complete without my sunglasses – what a stylish little one. We walked to a panoramic view spot and enjoyed some great views before deciding it was time to go back to the apartment and meet Chris who was arriving from Switzerland. On the dinner menu was some very tasty pizza - when in Italy!

Saturday proved to be a very rainy and wet day, so we stayed at home – we ate lots of good food, lounged around, built lego, read lots of books with the children, and drank lots of tea. Chris and I took Evan for a walk to the grocery store to pick up some pasta for dinner which we all enjoyed at home. It was actually really wonderful to have a lazy day together as a family.

On Sunday we woke up to sunshine so decided that it was definitely worth heading out for a boat trip on lake Como. We walked down to the lake only to discover that because of all the rain some of the roads surrounding the lake had been flooded. We took a detour and found our way to the ferry ticket office and decided that a 1 hour boat trip on the lake sounded like a good idea. We enjoyed the sunshine and the fresh (and slightly chilly) air and the gorgeous scenery. A walk through the old town led us to discovering what looked like a good lunch option, so we stopped for another delicious meal before heading out for some more exploring. The kids played in a play area and went on a few rides before we decided to visit the Como Cathedral – a majestic place more than 600 years old. We enjoyed another evening at home - I loved being part of the family dinner, bath and bed-time routine with Evan and Genevieve.

Monday morning meant it was time to head back to Lausanne, and considering it was another rainy day I don’t think any of us minded being on the train again. The children were little stars – Evan watched movies and played games on the ipad and Genevieve slept for a good bit. It was such fun to discover Italy together, and I was impressed with Roy & Caroline and their flexibility in traveling with little ones!

The rest of our time together in Switzerland was so special - I was so grateful to have time with this very precious family and for them to get to see my life in Lausanne!