Roadmending

Backblipped for 2nd July

We were woken in the night by torrential rain battering the roof just a few inches above our heads.

After a slow breakfast we headed north over the Swiss border through Ascona to Centi Valli (one hundred valleys), a deep gorge with a railway running along the sides, famous for its stupendous views.

We stopped for a while at Camedo station where two trains passed, one Swiss, one Italian, and watched several Marbled White butterflies floating among the flowery meadows. The rain came on heavily so we continued, seeing this scene of road reconstruction where the workers and construction vehicles seem to hang over the side of the gorge, squeezing our little car under the overhanging rock.

Approaching Re we couldn't help but notice a huge church and stopped to investigate; the church of Madonna del Sangue (Our Lady of the Blood) a C15 church, was enlarged from 1922-1958 with the Basilica Minori, the story being of the miracle of the time when a disgruntled worshipper threw a rock at the icon of the Madonna, which then bled from the wound.

Rather than continue to Domodossola we turned off in Malesco down Cannobino Valley and in the town managed to buy some excellent Parmesan cheese, Toronne and Panforte that we had promised to bring home.