(October 29, 2007)
Day two started with the best motel breakfast one could expect. Nuts of every kind, fruits of every kind, breads of every kind, cereals of every kind and more were laid out in front of us to choose from. I was late for breakfast as usual and my co-travelers waited anxiously as I took my own sweet time to get out of the cozy bed and get ready to stuff myself up. Steve was the most patient of all, as usual, and as others started gradually dropping out while I relished the bounteous breakfast, he stayed on to watch me eat like a pig. I have always wondered -- was he born with such plentiful patience or is it that he simply likes pigs… Either case would explain a lot of things for me…
A walk around Bolzano followed the stuff-uppery. The gorgeous church gazing, the window shopping, the picture taking and the lazy loitering filled the time gap between leaving for the mountains and Steve's getting ready (and no, he did not get delayed because of my breakfast!). The church had a fascinating roof composed of colorful, lovely roof tiles. Some day some part of my house will have Bolzano-church-inspired roof tiles, I decided -- only to change my decision some two days later in favor of the dolomite roof tiles in Cormayeur. The conical top of the church tower was another elaborate and involved piece of carving.
We drove further transversely following the same northeast path. More into the dolomites towards Cortina. Innsbruck was only a stone-throw distance away at one point and we were tempted to cross over to Austria. But, that being one of the many places I did have the visa for, we decided against it. What's the fun in painlessly crossing the border anyway?
Dolomites were stunning. Limestone presented itself in all its glory. Ravishing red, brown and gray shades of carbonate minerals against the gorgeous green and yellow shades of the conifers and other flora made for splendiferous contrast. The brief, picturesque hike we took on top of a mountain pass was one to die for. We walked around and hiked different paths and met and separated. The casual chitchat sitting on a rock on top of the grassy slope was something, I felt then, I could continue forever. But all good things must end to give way to better ones. Had we but world enough and time…
A better pass waited for us just around the corner or should I say just around the mountains; mountains that were all around. Passo Pordoi it was. Here is where we finally hit some truly chilled mountain air. On top of the pass was a quaint little souvenir shop, just for me, so I could buy the long-yearned refrigerator magnet to enhance my collection. There were ski lifts indicating that the slopes around must make for great ski slopes in winter. Dolomiti surrounded us in all directions. I envied the young lady working at the souvenir shop and fancied a quiet life in the mountains away from and out of the Matrix.
A few more passes and we were well at the twilight hour. Now was going to bring the natural climax of the trip. We raced for a view window where the sun and mountains would peek from behind the trees. What we saw now, no matter how hard one tried, could possibly not lend itself to being described effectively enough in words. As the sun went down in the mountains, it gave rise to a spectacular formation – my favoritest scenic sight -- the formation that crowned the mountain tops with pure gold. It was hard to make yourself believe that this was only the sunlight and the colors of it and how it played around with the mountains during that time of the hour. It could not have been anything other than real gold or at least its veneer. It was equally hard to believe that this was not permanent; just a temporary formation that lingered for a very small part of the day. We were awe-stricken by the wondrousness of this orgasmic view.
As we drove away, I realized that this stupendous sight had significantly augmented my repertoire of lifetime cherishables.
Driving, laughter, chin-wag and jokes pursued as we headed southwest to a marvelous meal in Rovereto and as we leisurely recovered from the pleasant hangover left behind from having experienced the natural high point. Merriment and natter continued at the dinner table where wonderful wine contributed to intensifying the pleasure. I generously feasted on the wine while waiting for the feast. We discussed everything from my school to when I would get married and how many kids I would like to have (why yes, that did feel like everything to me!).
My attempt to nudge, or rather force the conversation in a different direction found Steve rivaling against me over the classic Harvard-Stanford issue.
Although I pondered, throughout the conversation, about why it was even a question that an uptight Harvardian could be better than a cool Stanford grad, I must admit I did have fun during that friendly row. On a more serious note though, Stanford rocks! (I already hear Steve say "Hail Harvard!"). We must make one highly loyal Ivy League alumni pair!
Pete soon decided it was time to put a stop to the narcissism. There were other people at the table too, you know! The next fifteen minutes were consumed by yet another interesting topic – the topless Italian woman in a picture frame that stared right at our table. The aroma of the food that gradually arrived made us drift away from everything else though. Oh what a meal! I still miss the perfectly cooked lentils with just the perfect amount of condiments.
Oh no, the day was still not over. Stresa was on the cards for that night which meant driving quite a ways west to just a little bit north of Milan. Steve took charge of the driver's seat and as others decided to sleep in the back seats, I took the passenger seat. We just reiterated, a short while ago, loving that partnered drive. iPod chugged away in the car as a result of my struggle to sync it to the clearest radio station. Singing along with the iPod and sometimes without it, we made it a memorable 4-5 hour drive. Sweetest songs streaming from the music machine and perfect company – life was good!
Between navigating and cursing the signboards, singing and enjoying the good times, we reached Stresa. It had been a long day and all we could think of was hitting the hay. (To)Morrow was almost there!
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