From 16 Million to 4600!

Tuesday, I left the crowded metropolis of Istanbul, flew to Venice and stayed overnight near the airport.  Today (Wednesday) I met my friend who had flown in from Canada and we drove north from Venice into the Dolomites (Dolomiti in Italian) which is one of the regions in Italy where there are Alps.  We are now staying in the little town of Ortisei (population of about 4600) in the Val Gardena region of northern Italy.  What a complete difference in culture, scenery, prices, population density, and ambience.  

We rented our car at the Venice airport - who knew that MG made station wagons (I will post a photo but didn't get one today) - and we drove for about 4 hours through some of the most amazing scenery on one of the most challenging roads I have ever seen.  We had started from the airport heading to Belluno and, from there, went through several mountain passes before we finally reached our destination.  As I mentioned, the scenery was spectacular.

We are staying the region known as Val Gardena and it is a UNESCO World Heritage site.  From the information on the Internet, the valley is surrounded by breathtaking peaks and picturesque meadows and includes the three villages of Santa Cristina, Ortisei and Selva, all known legendary hospitality. The natural landscape invites you to go hiking or cycling, and to enjoy the numerous cultural events in the region. In winter, Val Gardena offers access to a vast ski area (the guy at the desk of our hotel told us there are 80 ski lifts, gondolas, etc. in the area) where winter sports enthusiasts - of all disciplines and all ages - will find ideal conditions for fun in the snow. Whether it's the Sellaronda, the Alpe di Siusi, or the many famous slopes of the Dolomiti Superski, the most adrenaline-filled descents, cross-country ski runs and toboggan runs are always just a stone's throw from your accommodation.

Below are the photos we took on our way from Belluno to Ortisei.  The scenery was spectacular.  






This region is close to the border of Austria and it has changed hands back and forth over the centuries.  While Italian is the main language, most everyone speaks and understand German. All the signage on buildings, streets, in restaurants, etc. is in both languages.   In addition, a local language called Ladin is also spoken.  Apparently, it is a Romance language spoken mainly in the Dolomite Mountains in the provinces of South Tyrol, Trentino, and Belluno. It exhibits similarities to Romansh, spoken in Switzerland, as well as Friulian, spoken in north-east Italy.  The language is not only the thing that is shared.  The buildings, food, and products in stores here, as well as the countryside, are very typical of alpine regions and you would never know you were in Italy.  It is a lot more like Austria, Bavaria or parts of Switzerland.  

Thursday morning, the weather was not cooperating with our plans to take the gondola up to Seceda, a very famous mountain located here that is part of the Dolomites UNESCO World Heritage site.  We gave up on that idea with our fingers crossed that we will get a chance to do that before we leave on Saturday.  After all, it is the reason we came here.  So, instead, we decided to visit Bolzano, a city of 100,00 people about one hour away.  What was very cool was when we checked into our hotel, we were both given a pass which gives us unlimited travel on the buses and the regional trains.  It is the region's attempt to get fewer cars on the roads and to be more "green:".  We were impressed.  So, because the train to Bolzano was already full by the time it got to Ortisei, we joined two Aussie couples who figured out we could take a bus to Ponte Gardena and a regional train to Bolzano.  

Once we were in Bolzano, we wandered around the Old Town and then sat in Walther Platz and shared a pizza and had a drink.











We have our fingers crossed that tomorrow we will be able to see the famous Seceda ridge; however, it is so charming and pretty here, we are enjoying it all regardless.

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