Ascona

This is the town of Ascona on Lake Maggiore where we are staying for two nights. I can't quite describe these pretty little towns on the Italian Lakes, they have a very continental feel to them, a mixture of Italian, Swiss German and something très chic like the French Riveira - yet being on a lake it does not have the frenetic madness of the most Mediterranean coastal towns in mid summer, it is more laid back, with people and dogs sitting on the grassy banks of the lake and cooling off in the water as they need to, people cycling and walking everywhere - very pleasant indeed!

We are staying in a hotel which is about 3.5km from the main heart of the village, which is where all the restaurants are. The hotel has bikes for the use of guests and so we cycle into town for dinner which is great fun, especially cycling back on the winding paths when it is dark.

This is the view of the main part of the town, which has restaurants all the way along the shore front, and many interesting little shops in which to browse.