Lecco: Between Lake Como and the Alps

Want to see (and, in winter, ski) the Alps? Get off the train in Lecco and walk across the station parking lot to the bus stand in via Montello, where the #5 bus departs, roughly every hour, for the Funivia (you can buy bus tickets at the newsstands inside or outside the railway station, or on the bus itself, though that will cost more).

Take the #5 all the way up the hill to the end of the line at the Funivia (cable car). Take the cable car to Piani d’Erna:

…where you will find ski facilities, restaurants, hotels, bars, and an unbeatable view of this end of Lake Como (above).

Pizzo d'Erna, Aug 22 2004

Tourist Information for Lecco

Why Do You Go Away?

“Why do you go away? So that you can come back. So that you can see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colors. And the people there see you differently, too. Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.”

Terry Pratchett in A Hat Full of Sky: The Continuing Adventures of Tiffany Aching and the Wee Free Men

San Francisco Cable Car

I hadn’t been on the cable cars in more than 20 years, but the California Street line happened to be my most efficient route between two points yesterday. So I learned that you’re allowed to hang off the side, as long as you stand on the runner board and don’t block people getting on and off. Makes for a hair-raising view, but – whee!

Deirdré Straughan on Italy, India, the Internet, the world, and now Australia