 |
| Yvderon |
We had a three-day weekend due to Pentecost and Whit Monday. After all the recent traveling, we decided to limit our exploring to day trips. Saturday, we drove over to Yverdon, the city on the western tip of Lake Neuchâtel and terminus of the
infamous 40-km bike ride. We wanted to check out some prices in a local sporting goods store but figured we'd take the opportunity to have lunch and stroll through town as well. The sporting goods shop (Athleticum) was in a strip mall of sorts, and we were happy to come across Boissons Center (read Beverage Center) adjacent to Athleticum. It had an excellent selection of beers, wines, liquors, and sodas; it was almost worth a trip to Yvderon alone. After purchasing some beverages for later consumption, we headed to Yverdon proper to find lunch. The Lonely Planet guide from the library suggested a crepe "diner" in town so that's where we headed. The crepes were pretty good (M really liked her fig, goat cheese, and honey crepe), but the service was really odd. The waiter either intentionally didn't understand us, or was arguing with us; it felt like he was trying to trick us or something. It's a good thing for him that he doesn't work for tips--though perhaps service would improve. After lunch, we walked about town, through the main square and by the castle, and stepped in and out of shops (including a chocolate shop!). We even came across a rummage sale along several of the streets and had fun looking around at the "treasures" for sale. We managed to head back to the car only a few minutes before the parking expired and the rain started.
 |
| Swiss Alps on the way to Aosta |
Sunday was the big adventure day. We drove south to the Vallé d'Aoste (Aosta Valley) in Northern Italy. This region is another of the lingual anomalies in Europe. Along the Rösti Divide in Switzerland, there are people speaking Swiss German and French. In Alsace, France, you have people speaking French, Alsatian, and German. And in Vallé d'Aoste, you have Italians speaking French and Italian, and supposedly a provençal patois. A significant percentage of the signs are French and Italian, and many of the village names look much more French than they do Italian. The region is bordered to the north by Switzerland and to the west by France. It was ruled by the House of Savoy until the late 1800s.
To get to Aosta from Neuchâtel, you have to cross the Swiss Alps using the Great St. Bernard Pass or Tunnel. Unlike the Goddard Tunnel, the St. Bernard Tunnel isn't free (30 SFr one-way or 48 SFr round trip), so we opted to take the scenic route. As expected, the Pass was a chain of harrowing switchbacks with a rock wall on one side and a cliff edge (with or without a guard-rail) on the other. One fun thing was that many of the guard-rails were made of wood logs instead of the standard steel. Along our drive, we had beautiful scenery, with alpine lakes, snow drifts, rocky peaks, wild flowers, and waterfalls.
 |
| Roman Theater |
Some of the main tourist attractions of the region (besides the beautiful scenery) are the ancient Roman ruins in the city of Aosta, the principal city in the valley. The city was the site of a Roman colony, the Augusta Praetoria Salassorum, sometime in the first century BC. The ancient town walls are very well preserved and a good portion are still standing. The old south gate of the town, known as the Porta Praetoria, is a double arched gate in the center of modern-day Aosta. After we parked our car near the large Arco d'Augusto, built in 35 BC to commemorate a victory over the ancient local peoples, we walked down one of Aosta's main streets to the Porta Praetoria.
 |
| M at the Roman Theater in Aosta |
From there, we followed the ancient wall until we reached the roman theater. It was surprising to see how well-intact one of the walls was, and it seemed strange to see Roman ruins up in the Alps (I generally associate them with more mild or temperate climes). The site is open free to the public, and we were able to walk around on the footpaths cutting through the site. Next to the theater is the Tour Fromage (named after a family, not cheese). It was one of the original Roman towers, but what seemed most interesting was that it houses a self-portrait of Leonardo da Vinci; unfortunately, we couldn't seem to figure out how to get inside or if it is even open to the public ever. So we walked around it and looked at its exterior.
 |
| Town of Aosta |
We had lunch at an outdoor Bruschetteria in Piazza Chanoux. It included a mixed salad, a vegetarian bruschetta (the largest piece of toast I have ever seen with pizza-like toppings on it), and a plate with locally produced cheese, including a fontina cheese known as Fontina Val d'Aosta. In addition to enjoying the view of the surrounding mountains, we had fun watching the biker gangs pull into the piazza while we sipped our fizzy red wine.
 |
| Aosta Cathedral |
After lunch, we stopped in the cathedral, which originally dates from the 4th century but which has a 19th century neoclassical facade. The cathedral had several vibrant frescoes and houses a treasury museum (which was closed). We then rambled through the Roman cryptoporticus next door. The cryptoporticus is all that's left now of the old Roman forum. The part open to the public consists of three long, practically subterranean hallways with arches cutting each hallway lengthwise. They had great mood-lighting in the tunnels/hallways, and it was neat to think how old the structure was. M was a bit disappointed that photos were not allowed
 |
| Castello di Fénis |
We wandered back through town, grabbed some gelato (green apple for K and biscotto for M), and headed back to the car. Since it was a rather long drive (3+ hours) to Aosta, we wanted to take the opportunity to see a little more of the region since we had plenty of daylight left. We decided to see one of the many castelli in the valley. We decided on the medieval Castello di Fénis, a 15 minute drive east of Aosta. Once we arrived, we waited about 20-minutes for the tour to start. Then we followed the Italian-speaking tour guide through the open parts of the castle. There were plaques/signs in the rooms, some in Italian and French and some with English. But it was really difficult to figure out what the guide was talking about. Upon further reflexion, we probably should have asked some questions in French to get a little more out of the tour. Regardless, we did get to see interesting rooms within the castle. The highlights of the castle included several frescoes (one featuring St. George slaying a dragon and rescuing a princess) and artisinal pieces of period furniture.
 |
| K in the Alps |
After the castello, we decided to start the long, winding drive home. On the drive over the Alps, we stopped to walk around a little bit and play in the snow. We stopped at a turnout, and then climbed over the rocky terrain. While K dipped a finger in the snowmelt stream, M felt she needed some refreshment so imbibed some fresh Alpine water; we'll see if she gets any intestinal parasites... As M was taking her chances with Alpine cholera, K scrambled up a mountain hill and spotted a marmot. Once M finally figured out where K had run off to, she scrambled herself up the mountain hill. We both watched the plump furry creature bounding on the snow and rocks until he disappeared into a crevice. We found the easy way back down to the car and made our way home.
Monday, we chilled at home and did some "spring cleaning."
Lessons learned:
1. You can get gelato on a stick!
2. St. Bernards are no longer used as search and rescue dogs in the Alps. However, you can buy a stuffed toy dog all over the St. Bernard region, from Martigny, Switzerland to Aosta.
No comments:
Post a Comment