Oops. Once again I have neglected my blog – sorry! Please forgive me.
Rewinding way back to August, I’m going to elaborate on my beautiful trip to Italy.
So Julian has this old van which he’s turned into a camper – with a teak wood floor, a pull out double bed and a kitchenette on wheels. He built it all himself and I am so proud of him.
Look, it even has a pop-top so you can stand up inside the van (complete with mozzie net because I am delicious, apparently)!
After a long drive (and a swiss speeding ticket *eye roll*), Julian made it to Italy. I had just had a job offer and was given two weeks before my start date so naturally I wanted to get my little bum over to Italy asap.
Our first stop was Lake Garda. I’d heard of the beauty of the Italian lakes but I wasn’t prepared. It was so stunning, it didn’t look real!!
Now living in a van for a week sounds romantic but there are some practical issues to address. The first night Julian wanted to treat me to a camp site (because I am a prude princess regarding public toilets and this was deemed the safest option). How wrong we were. Breaking off from the main road, we turned into the camp site; caravans were packed together, only a few feet apart, kids were screaming, washing was hanging from trees, and portly middle-aged men with hairy belly buttons paraded the site in their speedos. It was horrifying. We got out of there.
Instead we set up camp in a car park right alongside the lake, which was full of other camper vans. (Toilet update: there was one toilet in a strange futuristic chamber and I couldn’t work out how to turn on the lights.)
We explored along the lake and went into a cute little town for coffee and a cornetto, made lunch in the kitchenette in the van, then took a swim in the clear water of the lake.
The following day we explored the other side of Lake Garda and attempted to sample every flavour of gelato. The sunset was pretty sweet too.
We parked up in a lay-by a little out of town, to not be disturbed, with a view over the lake. And with bellies full of fresh fish and red wine, we nodded off.
(Toilet update: there wasn’t one. I had to wee in the grass, in the dark, shielded by the van. Though it turns out I actually prefer this to an ugly toilet block!)
The next day we drove up into the mountains, struggling up the precariously steep roads. Singing along to our ‘indie road trip’ playlist we wound our way through the landscape and the trusty van soon made it to the top of the mountain. The views were insane. It was the perfect spot for a generous bowl of pasta and a nap in the sun.
After snapping a few pics of Lake Idro we meandered down the mountain to the water front. Julian wandered off to take fancy photos and I contentedly waded in the shallows, working on my tan (burn). We then devoured some more gelato, of course…
To be continued…
I still have half a week of my Italian adventure to divulge so stay tuned!
As ever, have a lovely week xxx
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