ride a vintage scooter through the Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse, Austria's most beautiful panoramic road

riding a lambretta through the Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse

since I had found out about Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse, a panoramic road in Austria which, on paper, seemed a wonderful way to spend one of our lambretta weekends away, I've been hoping to find a lovely autumn day to enjoy it to the fullest.

good weather was an indispensable requirement to confront the long road and the highest mountain of Austria. since we were planning our little trip for mid-October, of course we weren't completely sure we were actually going to leave until the day before: we checked the weather forecast everyday that week, but even when the nice symbol of the sun steady showed up on our screens, we've never dreamt we'd be so lucky! we have ridden through Austria's highest scenic road on the best autumn day you could imagine, with blue cloudless sky and a view made of stunning mountain peaks, snow and those amazing warm tones that you can find during October in the Alps.

I will never forget it, it has been one of the most beautiful ride of my life, so I've prepared this detailed post to share all the informations with you ♥

early autumn alpine weekend in Cortina d'Ampezzo

the pink hues of a Dolomites sunset

we started the new season in our own way, by taking a couple of days by ourselves, to go to the most beautiful town of the Dolomites, our dear Cortina d'Ampezzo. 

in spite of being quite close to our home, less than 90 kilometers, even when we visit for a day or just an afternoon (it happens), the chilly air and the stunning alpine landscape don't fail to make me feel happier, somehow clearer and recharged. it's mountain magic, nature magic. 

we visited some old spots and tried new ones, starting with a lovely glamping experience at the international camping Olympia, where we rented the cosiest wooden tent.

the blue hour  in Cortina, outside our wooden tent at camping Olympia 

foliage ride and hot chocolate picnic. November, Sunday 1st

 when it doesn't get all foggy, wet and grey, autumn can spoil you with days like this one. 

ENI village in Borca di Cadore. October, Saturday 10th

i've been wanting to visit the ENI village for a long time. it opens to the public just on special occasions, and i was thrilled to finally see a guided tour organized by Progetto Borca on a day we could attend. 

we rode to Borca di Cadore {near Cortina d'Ampezzo, in the amazing Dolomites} by lambretta.

given the cold and gloomy day, it was kind of risky, but in the end we were able to make a lambretta field trip out of it. 

we enjoy visiting places like this one, that we consider the most special and interesting, even more when we visit them by scooter.

autumn. to - do list

i'm fond of lists. even too much, i suppose. i make lists all the time. to-do lists help me staying focused and working on myself. i usually do better with short term list, checking all the boxes. long term to do lists tend to lose their relevancy after some time {i don't even recognize my own dreams when, in december, i re-read the to-do list i wrote in january}. then, there are bucket lists, things i love lists, and more! do you make lists? what kind?

this is the third illustrated autumn to-do list in a row. i love to put all the sweetest autumn plans into that, in order to be excited for the new season instead of being nostalgic for summer.

{sensational} Umbria. November, 14th-16th

in the very heart of Italy, there is a region named Umbria, nestled beetwen the most known Tuscany and Lazio, cradle of the Roman civilization. to me, Umbria means hills, rich traditions, stunning sacred art, medieval villages (on the top of the hills), tasty food in which local ingredients succeed in expressing themselves, preserving the peculiar flavours given them from a generous land.
every time i have the chance to visit this region, i came home willing to go back soon, to see more, to taste more. this time was no exception.

the three stops of this brief field trip were Perugia, Orvieto and Montefalco.
the main colors were an intense, dark green, some warm browns and some touch of red. an evocative mist wrapped the foot of the hills, letting perched villages and pointy cypresses surface. the fog, far from being gloomy as it can be in other places, softly followed us, framing the landscapes full of vineyards and olive trees.

a weekend away, in the green. September, 27th-28th

sometimes you just need to go away for a couple of days. embrace the road. enjoy the shades of greens. smell the autumn. feel the mountain. discover new textures of the nature. soak in the quiet. 

autumn. to - do list

autumn to do list - 2014 version

town festival

one of those small town sundays. with the fair, chestnuts and quirky characters.
it could be easily called Stars Hollow (minus the gazebo), but it's Cordignano instead. 

Feltre. November, Friday 1st

piazza maggiore, with San Rocco and San Sebastiano church, and the Castle of Alboin

november 1st is all saints' day, a national holiday in Italy. the tradition is to visit the graves of deceades relatives, pray and light candles. this holiday is not what i would call merry, but it's not a mouring day either. i love to see it as a time to celebrate family and roots. that's why marco and i decided to go to Feltre, the town where my grandma comes from.

the weather is still surprisingly warm, so we went by lambretta! i'm happy the scooter season is so long this year. Feltre is a town located in an alpine area in the middle of a wide valley, bordered to the north by the Dolomites, the Feltre peaks {vette feltrine} and the Piave river.

piazza Maggiore

a walk in Feltre's old town is a journey into renaissance elegance, the autumn colors of the trees match the beautifully frescoed walls of the houses, there are cozy cafès and hosterias, stylish clothes shops, delicatessens stores. it culminates in the wide piazza maggiore, a large square dominated by San Rocco and San Sebastiano church {1576 - 1632}. old gates and the Castle of Alboin, which can be seen near the church, are the witnesses of the ancient roman defensive structure.

contrade: duomo, santo stefano, castello, portoria

on the square's pavement, four emblems are painted in bright colors: they are the symbols of contrade, districts in which the town is divided. the contrade face each other every year, in an historical competition called Palio. the Palio di Feltre is held at the end of july, and includes horse race, tug of war, archery and relay race. it seems that the Palio's origins date back to the 14th century.

a gourmet tip: take a break at the best bakery in town, pasticceria Garbujo {via Tezze 16}. my grandma told me that when she was a schoolgirl, during war time, sometimes she pampered herself with Garbujo's raisin bread or gelato. nowadays the speciality is strudel, but all the pastries are delicious. they also sells fine chocolate.

wandering in the streets

arcade in via mezzaterra | a gourmet shop

one of the many cafes

a painted wall

the next stop of our visit was just outside the city center, where in a mountain rocky spur lies a charming shrine devoted to Saints Victor and Corona. the grey sky gives to the place a gloomy look, and the surrounding forest was a haven of peace and quiet.

shrine of the saints victor and corona

before leaving Feltre, i wanted to show marco my grandma's birthplace, in a hamlet called Villapaiera. her parents house is still there, with a wide courtyard and garden. i remembered a big nut-tree, and i wanted to harvest some walnuts. unfortunately, the tree was there but there were no walnuts. the neighbors told us it has been a bad year for the harvest. so we just took a picture.

Villapaiera's church

in the courtyard of my grandma's parents house.

strawberry tree forever

"o verde albero italico, il tuo maggio

è nella bruma: s'anche tutto muora,

tu il giovanile gonfalon selvaggio

spieghi alla bora" 

Giovanni Pascoli

strawberry tree, arbutus unedo, corbezzolo. this tree colors the autumn with its bright red berries. as the Pascoli's poem i quoted says, its May is in the mist. 

we greeted November harvesting juicy sweetness. we have a big strawberry tree in the garden, now dotted in red. my grandma says it is a symbol of warm welcoming, and that's why it has been planted near the entrance gate.

have a lovely weekend ♥
{nikon em + fuji superia 200}

le immagini della fantasia, Sàrmede. October, Monday 28th

once upon a time, a funny man armed with crayons and watercolors left Prague, wandered around Europe for a while, then came to live in a hilly village of the Veneto countryside, bringing colors, creativity, talking animals, imagination,  butterflies and childlike joy with him. 

the most beautiful Zavřel's book, un sogno a venezia

the village is called Sàrmede, and now, even if the funny man is gone and living just in his colorful artworks, the place is known as il paese delle fiabe: the fairytales town.  i'm talking about the illustrator Štěpán Zavřel, born in Prague in 1932, who lived in Rugolo di Sàrmede from 1968 until the day he passed away in 1999. he has been one of the most important illustrators of the european arena in the last thirty years. 

Gabriel Pacheco's illustration that is the poster of le immagini della fantasia 31

when i said he brought colors to Sàrmede i ment it literally: he has painted frescoes on some houses walls that still adorn the streets of the town. then, in 1983, Zavřel co-created the exhibition of children's illustrations called le immagini della fantasia {the images of fantasy}, which now, after 31 years, is an international event. so colors, creativity, and imaginations are still coming to Sàrmede, with many artists from all over the world.

one of the Sàrmede's frescoes. and me.

it opened on october 26th, and we paid a visit the next monday. it's a date, a personal rainbow: marco and i love to visit le immagini della fantasia every year, and my inner child can't have enough fairytales. 

illustrated book

Cristina Pieropan (Italia)

Camilla Engman (Sweden)

the exhibition is divided into three sections. the first one, panorama 2013, showcases 30 illustrators  from all over the world, offering an overview on the finest recently published books. 

then, there is the guest of honor's section, dedicate to the mexican artist Gabriel Pacheco. his works are poems without words. soft and intense.

silence enfolds us like an imperceptible chord. the moon basks in admiration, like a lovely story. it beams down upon us. we play at making out shapes in its markings, just like you do with clouds: a crab, a drum, a rabbit. a child reads quietly, surrounded by the subtle nuance that silence brings: he is wholly captivated by the book. he reads about the god Quetzalcoatl, in the mexican legend about the rabbit and the moon. the tales arouse and recall memories. reading takes us into the oneiric dimension of the imagination. above us an entire sky: a band of aged musicians whose expression is profound. or perhaps it is the nocturnal sky that has taken on the appearance of the musicians; they play sweet music, whilst a child imagines them.

illustrated book by Gabriel Pacheco

the third section hosts  the theme of the year (i still remember the cat's year with love!), and 2013 is dedicated to tales, legends, symbols from Mexico.

remarkable indigenous figures of Mexico's ancient people are still alive in their tales: mother earth, talking animals who discovered precious corn, the mythical feathered serpent and its duality of sky and earth, princes and princesses held back from their love, the great grandmother of light and her mischievous grandchildren… highly evocative manifold cultural elements that also interweave with later cultures betterknown to us. 
bright red walls explained meaning and sense of tigrada, catrina, nahual, quetzacoatl, alebrije.. twelve symbols were chosen to create an illustrated mosaic, designed to make us feel the mexican voices, flavours,charm, traditions. 

mexican symbols

Frida Kahlo, a book by Maria Baranda illustrated by Gabriel Pacheco

le immagini della fantasia, since the first editions, has never been just a show of drawings for children, but it has presented itself as a place for knowledge, culture and beauty, an international observatory on the world of Illustration.

for example, Sàrmede also hosts the international school of illustration, founded by Štěpán Zavřel. courses provide training sessions for various levels: from artistic specialisation for those at advanced level to foundation courses for anyone interested in discovering this world.

if any of you is interested, i'd be glad to welcome and host you for the class period ♥

info

Sàrmede, le immagini della fantasia 31

27.10.2013 > 19.01.2014

via Marconi, 2 - 31026 Sàrmede TV

monday to friday 9.00-17.00

saturday and sunday 10.00-21.30

{26.12.2013 > 03.01.2014 14.30-19.00}

Lisboa. October, 16th-20th.

we have a new love and its name is Lisboa.
we had just 4 days to explore the city and of course we did not see everything we wanna see, but it is a good reason to pay another visit. it was my first time in Portugal, so i can't give any advice as an expert. i'm sharing a list of what impressed us about the city instead, along with some analogue shots.
enjoy a ride through this vibrant, nostalgic, decadent, colorful, capricious, relaxed and tangled town. 

collage of azulejos. which one is your favorite?

11 things we love about Lisboa

l. the azulejos
i think you've already figured it out from the pictures! it was something that i was longing to see, and i wasn't disappointed at all. they are poems, of various shapes and colors, that give style and personality to the old houses. i'd spend hours photographing them. and oops, i did.

2. the food is incredibly good
we had eleven meals in Lisboa and it has been a great experience, every time. good food at good price, this is one of the best things that can happen while travelling. i bet they have a special way to marinate the meat before grilling, because churrasco was delicious. and i ate the best pork ribs ever.

arco de Rua Augusta | elevador de Santa Justa

3. tram 28
an absolutely non-touristic service, but an actual means of transport used by locals, that has become a must in every Lisbon trip. why? because it is charming and vintage looking; it makes an adorable sound; drivers are an endless source of anecdotes and tips; it takes you to the most interesting places of the town; sometimes it is scary as a merry-go-round {when you know that you're not going to crash, but are still worried} when it passes through the narrowest and steepest streets; you can observe the daily lisbon-life; it is relatively cheap. why relatively? one-way ticket costs 2,85 €, which is not cheap, but the daily Viva Viagem card costs 6€ and it's valid  for unlimited trips on tram, bus and metro lines for 24h. 
n.b. taxis are (relatively) cheap, too. 

miraduro de Santa Luzia

stairs

4. free art

there are some museums with free-entrance, like the Museu do Design e da Moda and the Museu Colecção Berardo. and, on sunday morning, all Lisbon museums are free entry. isn't that wonderful?

5. drinks are good, too!

porto, ginjinha (com!), sangria, coffee. portugueses have good taste when it comes to drinks, too. 

doors | left: mosteiro dos Jerónimos | right: the front door of our airbnb's charming flat 

Rossio

they said goodbyes at the door and now she watches him going

6. pasteis de nata in Belem
we're talking about food again. street food, to be precise. pasteis de nata are delicious pastries filled with custard. they can be found in every bakeries of Lisboa, but eating them at the fabrica dos pasteis de Belem  {founded in 1837, next to the mosteiro do Jeronimos}alone is worth the trip.

7. changeable weather
the city is moody. sometimes she's punding and puffy clouds thicken over the Tejo. 10 minutes later it's raining. 15 minutes later the sky is so blue you want to sing.
unpredictable and whimsical, like a girl.

castelo de São Jorge

near the miraduro de Santa Luzia

8. the language

 i consider portuguese as the language that taught me to love foreign languages. i was seventeen, i had been studying english for years, but i used it just at school, i had never taken a trip alone, never had the need to actually use a foreign language to understand or be understood. then i spent one month in Brazil, discovering the beauty of meeting and getting to know a different culture. 

of course, the Portugal's portuguese is very different, but hearing that was music to my hears. 

street in Alfama

9. lively people, streets, cafès
it may sounds as a cliché, but people are actually nice. even if they don't speak english, they know the universal language of smiles and gestural expressiveness. or maybe we have just been lucky.
the city is teeming with life, but still relaxed and informal. it seems a beautiful place to live.

10. different neighborhoods with different souls
Belem, Graça, Alfama, Estrela, Castelo, Chiado, Bairro Alto, Baixa, Rossio, Alcântara: every neighborhood we visited has its own personality. explore and understand them is a challenge! 

mosteiro dos Jerónimos. i love the light on this one.

11. similarities with Italy

yes, we travel to see something different. but sometimes is funny to see something that is, in certain ways, familiar. many features of Lisboa reminded us of Italy. old people gathering at the bar, playing cards or watching football, the omnipresent coffee (espresso), a capital city built  on seven hills, the glorious history, lots of churches and greengrocers, hanging laundry. have you noticed other?

vespa 42L2 {marco insisted on showing this one}. we saw many vespas, and just one lambretta. unfortunately, it was too dark to take a picture of the lambretta, but we were lucky enough to meet the owner, a lovely girl who speaks perfect italian. we chatted for a while but didn't exchange contacts. too bad. 

playing cards

marco and azulejos

address book
this is lisbon hostel | rua da costa do castelo 63 (entrance from escadinhas marquês ponte de lima 1)
cozy hostel in Castelo, friendly atmosphere. clean and quiet. amazing terrace. we loved our breakfast with a view on the rooftops!

airbnb flat in Estrela | travessa peixeira
a cute flat in a quiet neighborhood, well connected, on the tram 28's route. clean, nice price, lovely details. our hosts were the kindest!
{there is a beautiful bookshop nearby, called Palavra de Viajante, that sells travel -and travel related- books}

a vida portugesa | rua anchieta, 11
best shop in town. make sure to buy your souvenirs here.

fabrica dos pasteis de Belem | rua de Belém 84-92 Belém
see point 6.

churrasco da Graça | largo da Graca 45
see point 2. delicious churrasco.

museu Nacional do Azulejos | rua da madre de deus, 4
beautiful museum to learn more about this art form

mosteiro dos Jeronimos | praça do império
stunning. UNESCO wolrd heritage site. make sure not to miss it.

taberna ideal | rua da esperança 112
loved it. delicious sangria, vintage hints, eclectic menù, super kind staff. the don't accept credit cards.

museu Colecção Berardo | praça do império
huge art collection that covers the entire 20th century. free entry, free wifi, ok to take pictures. wow!

lx factory | rua rodrigues faria 103
pure creativity. hip place with cozy cafes and restaurants, nice shops in a former textile factory. sunday market from 11am.

fragoleto | rua da prata 61
creative ice cream flavors. try the one with goat milk.

street musicians in largo do Carmo

{nikon em + kodak color plus 200 | fujicolor 200}
to see some other pictures, visit i diari della lambretta's facebook page or my flickr.