More Adventures with the Neighbours

Saturday June 20

This morning a swim in the Med was on Christy's check list and the sunshine beckoned bright and early.  While Caroline and Christy jogged off to a sandy swimming beach, Cheryl and I took a more leisurely approach with a stroll into the centre of Menton which was already alive with early morning hustle and bustle.  We didn't spot the girls who must have run much further than we expected, so returned to the hotel along the seafront - breakfast was occupying our thoughts!  We sat in the pretty courtyard enjoying the buffet, the girls returned - lovely swim apparently - and before long we were packed up and driving along the scenic coast road towards Italy. The traffic was light, the views stunning and the weather perfect.

Swimming beach - Menton

Crossing the border into Italy, we turned inland at the rather shabby little town of Ventimiglia and headed for the hills.  Following a stunning river valley and gradually climbing we returned to French soil and continued our winding way up past Briel-sur-Roya, eventually turning off at our stop off spot, the remote and stunning village of Saorge which clings to the steep terrain above the Roya River (this one definitely deserves its membership in the Plus Beaux Villages de France Association).  We were now in the extensive and stunning Mercantour National Park, a place of incredible biodiversity, crumbling old villages, ski fields, lakes and wonderful alpine trails for both walkers and cyclists.

Roya River

 By mistake we took the first turning off the main road and were rewarded with stupendous views loooking up to the entire village which clings precariously to the steep forested hillside.

Looking up to Saorge

  Access to  Saorge was a little further on so we retraced our route and took the little narrow road to the village parking lot.  A small Saturday market greeted us as we strolled into the centre of the town - my this place is old!  In fact parts of Saorge date back to the 9th Century, but most of the higgledy-piggledy houses are 15th Century.  We stumbled upon a kind of hole in the wall, glimpsed a stunning view and realised that it was the entrance to a charming restaurant - what better spot for lunch.

Restaurant view - up

and down!

  Bliss!  The view, the friendly couple who cooked and waited on us, the deliciously simple food - the stuff of dreams really.  We had Tourte Saorge,(tomato, onion, basil and cheese flan I guess - freshly baked by monsieur this morning) and goat's cheese salad (locally sourced of course).

Tourte Saorge

Fresh goat's cheese salad

Gosh it was difficult to tear ourselves away and continue our journey over the mountains and into Italy.  Actually we cheated a bit further up and took the Col de Tende tunnel through to Italy instead of the mountain pass (very slow and winding) in order to shorten the journey a little.
We followed the Roya River higher and higher and reached the final settlement in France, Tende, with the high peaks beyond still showing traces of snow.

Fontan on the Roya River

Mountains surrounding Tende

Dessert in sleepy Tende - everything closed on Saturday afternoon except a couple of well patronised bars and a very nice bakery - so eclairs and tarte citron for afters!

Tende

There was a queue for the one way tunnel - not a long wait - and then we were back in Italy descending through small ski villages towards Turin and the agricultural plains of the River Po.  Today in the distance the Alps were clearly visible with the Matterhorn (Monte Cervino in Italy) standing proudly above the other peaks.  Despite the proximity of such a large city the traffic on the autostrada that by-passes Turin was quite light and we made good progress to our turnoff to Lake Orta, the westernmost lake of the beautiful Italian lakes region, and one of the smallest. Soon the lake revealed itself, sparkling in the evening sunlight and we followed the shoreline for a while before taking the very appropriately named Via Panoramica which led to our town, Orta San Giulio, delightfully situated on a little peninsula away from the main roads.  What a place!  Hotel Bussola sits on a hill overlooking the lake, with the old town just below - a 10 minute walk (no cars allowed).

Orta San Giulio - the view to the village from our hotel  balcony

 Sitting in the middle of the lake is a miniature island dominated by a Benedictine monastery.
We were totally won over by the ambience, the views and most importantly the warm welcome we received from the owners, a Swiss/Italian family and Foxy their great mutt of a Dalmation - so gentle and laid back.

From the hotel - Orta San Giulio and the Island of San Giulio

After settling in we went down to the village for dinner - being Saturday night the place was buzzing and we were limited with choice of restaurant - a simple brasserie on the square proved perfectly adequate for a tasty meal and the gelato on the walk home finished us off nicely.  So glad we have three nights to chill out in this beautiful place, to soak up the atmosphere and to enjoy the wonderful food and wine. Orta San Giulio is an exquisite jewel of a little town that just glows in the last of the sunlight setting over the distant mountains.

Isola San Giulio - so pretty at night!