Getting out of Munich wasn't too bad with the nav leading the way and it was interesting to see the city from the road. Once on the Autobahn again, it was smooth and fast just as I thought. There were frequent slowdowns for either small construction or congested areas, but it was very fast and required full concentration. There were numerous tunnels, and I'd roll down the windows and rev the engine. What a glorious sound it makes!
We passed into Switzerland as we got into the Alps and it got progressively more beautiful as we started passing snow capped mountains. Although the speed limit dropped to ~120km/hr (80), people were generally cruising at 100mph or more. The Alpine scenery was emerald green as you can imagine and Cara and I loaded up "The Sound of Music" on the ipod. I know it sounds cheesy, and it was :) But we had a great time singing along. The views were terrific but we passed a beautiful church and village on the right, and I asked "I wonder how you get there?". As fate would have it, an exit popped up that had to lead there. We turned on and found our way to the church. The village was fairly empty since we imagine everyone was at work. It was a fantastic stroll around the village and we got our fill of walking and pictures, and were back on our way.
About noon, we passed the Alps and passed the Italian border. This started the Dolomite mountains which were very different in topography. (very "lord of the rings"-y). It was amazing, curvy and fast, much like driving past Asheville, NC on I-40, but much smoother, and better drivers. I drove pretty hard until about 1pm, and we were both starving. We stopped for lunch at a gas station and ordered a couple of proscuitto and mozarella sandwiches. (Amazing what you can get at a gas station) While they were being toasted, Cara and I stepped back to get a couple bottles of water. Out of the corner of my eye, a man walked up to the counter and asked (in Italian) for one of the sandwiches (when there were other types to choose from) From context, I heard the attendant politely tell him they were spoken for. The guy broadened his shoulders and pointed at him and (again from context) said "Give it to me now". The attendant was obviously intimadated and reluctantly obliged, to Cara's and my disbelief. I got pretty angry, and expressed my discontent, but the man ignored me and walked out the door. The attendent apologized profusely, saying he would fix us another, but I just picked something else off the counter since I was starving. I cooled down and decided not to make a big deal out of it since the man was probably a local which had either some sway or power that the attendant was too scared to go against. It was a very strange experience.
I talked Cara into driving at that point, and although she was nervous at first, she did a wonderful job. As fun as it is driving there, the roads in Italy are much tighter than the Autobahn and very close in the construction zones. (Still going 80-100). The scenery continued and it was nice to have a breather and be able to really look as you can't pay any attention while driving. About an hour from Verona, I took over again, and we dropped out of the mountains and things really flattened out.
As we arrived in Verona, the road got very tight and busy. It was pretty intimidating navigating the tiny streets, but passing over the river and into the old city was beautiful. We got finally found our hotel, the Hotel Victoria and parked on the little street outside. As we got checked in, luckily the parking deck had availability and they said they would help us get parked. We had no idea what we were in store for. Two bus boys came out to help us, and had to navigate a labyrinth of steep inclines and right angle turns which teh car barely fit through. It was very unnerving, espcially since I wasn't used to the new transmission and we had to make several 10-point turns to make it around several corners. I don't think Cara and I breathed the whole time. We were both amazed that we pulled through without scratching the car.
The hotel room was gorgeous, and very spacious, and by European standards massive. The walls were covered in beautiful fabric, with heavy curtains. The bathroom was all marble, and had a huge jacuzzi and seperate glass shower. We were really glad to call it home for a few days.
It was pretty late, so we got cleaned up and walked straight to dinner using my Blackberry's Google map GPS, which took us right there. My colleague at work had recommended the Risterante Cenacollo, and I had booked it in advance. They offered a tasting menu, which I thought would be a great idea. In a very Italian style, they brought us food off the start... a wonder proscuitto and melon. We again, had no idea what we were in for. They brought us plate after plate of amazing food,literally eight courses consisting of:
- Prosciutto and Melon & bruschetta
- roasted zucchinni, tomato, endive and stuffed mushroom
- polenta with gorgonzola
- fried mozzerella with tomato and basil (& roasted peppers)
- Eggplant parmesan
- mushroom risotto with tortellini
- Mixed grill meats with lamb and potatoes
- Tirmasu & Peaches
- Biscotti & Lemoncello
We literally started joking that they were trying to kill us with food. At that point, they brought us this incredibly large plate of meats, and just before we started thinking about eating it, they brought a whole other dish of lamb and potatoes. It was rediculous and we knew they were trying to kill us. I cannot describe to you how much food it was. If you think you've gotten full at Maggiano's, I tell you it was nothing compared to this. This was two Thanksgiving dinner's worth. The tiramasu they brought for dessert was incredibly good, probably the best I've ever had, and I joked to Cara that they would bring us something else. Sure enough, they didn't disappoint, and brought by these wonderful biscotti. At that point, we had to be wheeled out and shock-paddled back to life. We had to run for our lives, or they would've kept trying to feed us until we died. Seriously tho, the most unbelievable part was the check. It was only 80 euro, and for the feast of a lifetime, was unbelievably cheap. I didn't think it was right, and the guy assured me it was. We decided to leave them a heavy tip and got out of there with our lives intact.
We tried to walk it off, by walking to a nearby piazza, (which was beautiful) filled with "20 somethings" hanging out. We had a good time people watching for a few minutes, and headed back to the hotel for a good night's rest.
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