analogue walk in Belluno. October, Saturday 11th

if you've enjoyed the little guide of Belluno, here's some other film photos i took the same day, after a cool lambretta ride, during our explorative walk with Valentina.

wish you a great week  
♥

graffiti | Belluno | fujicolor 200

Belluno | a little guide

i felt it was about time to write some more practical posts about this little corner of Italy where we live in. i didn't want them to be too dry and schematic, i want them to have the same amount of inspirational stuff and charm that a regular post of this blog has. we asked a friend to be our local guide for one day and we had fun playing the tourists, listening, taking pictures and sketching.

the result is this little guide to Belluno, completely i diari della lambretta style: there are insiders tips, illustrations, film photos and some reasons to fall in love with the town. enjoy!

ponte della vittoria {victory bridge} and a look to the city centre | fujicolor 200

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.

June, Sunday 7th. brent de l'art, multi coloured wild canyon

when the heat is unbearable, we are grateful to live so close to the mountains, so we can jump on the lambretta and ride to a cooler place, like brent de l'art in Trichiana.

April, Sunday 6th. snow & vintage scooters

apparently, this is what marco does when i'm away for work.

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.

Snowy Valentine. February, Sunday 17th

it's still too cold for outdoorsy sundays by lambretta.
so we celebrated the day of lovers hiking in Cadore's mountains.
♥

white path, magical silence, scent of snow.
besides all the lovey dovey details, we walked from Valle di Cadore to the cozy Rifugio Costapiana,which offers tasty homemade meals and a stunning view
{to know what a rifugio is, check out this page}

{olympus om10 + fuji superia 200}

info
Rifugio Costapiana
Località Costa Piana  
32040 Valle di Cadore Belluno
www.rifugiocostapiana.it

la Regina, Cortina d'Ampezzo. August, Sunday 19th

The weekend didn't start in a good way, on Saturday morning I found out that the film I used to photograph our day-trips to Passo Rolle and Carso (our friend Miss P took us to the best osmize near Trieste) turned out completely grey. I was really exited to blog about these beautiful location and to see how the photos look like. I keep telling myself that it's a good excuse to come back for another visit but... we'll see.



However, that wasn't a good reason to stay home on Sunday. It was so hot that the decision to move towards the mountain was unavoidable.

When we go somewhere in Cadore, we always make a stop in the wonderful Pasticceria Fiori in San Vito di Cadore. They are so kind! The pastries are delicious and if you want something sweet and refreshing, ask for the Ski Wasser, a non-alcoholic cocktail made of raspberry syrup, lemon juice, soda and ice (the alcoholic version has gin in it).

After the break, we continued towards Cortina. It was hotter than we expected, so the long road was unconfortable, but we made it in time for lunch.
There are a lot of good restaurants were you can taste the local cousine, we choose the Baita Piè Tofana, near the ski slopes. It's funny how different is this place in summer. Even without the magic of the snow, it's still wonderful. 

In spite of all the cheesy eighties movies, the overpriced bar and restaurants, the snobbish tourists, don't forget that Cortina is called the Dolomites Queen for a reason. And the most amazing thing here is the one that you don't have to pay for. Just take a look around, you'll fall in love with that views, lanscapes, blue skies, smell of wood and musk.

From August 11th to September 15th, contemporary art, too, is at home in Cortina, with Dolomiti Contemporanee, a  project that brings contemporary art to the Dolomites. (more info here)
The exhibition "Play by the rules / giocando secondo (con) le regole" is held inside the Ethnographic Museum and plays with the connections beetween tradition and modernity. This exhibition is just a small piece of 2012 DC's puzzle,the biggest part of the project  is held in Taibon, inside a disused glasses factory.