We spent two full days in Locarno on Lake Maggiore. While officially in Switzerland, you would never know it by looking at the menus or listening to the conversations around you. Everything here leads you to believe that you are actually in Italy. Ticino Merlot is the product of this overlapping of Swiss terrain and Italian gastronomy and is quite tasty.
We spent our first full day on a recommended walking tour which only lasted a few hours. The itinerary included the usual churches, cemeteries and castles that you would expect in this region. Locarno is small, but has its fair share of these attractions and the tour is easily extended with some window shopping. As we had already explored one side of the lake, the Lido, Botanical Garden, and river walk the afternoon before, we decided to pedonale along the other side of the lake before heading to an early dinner (by Italian standards).
Our last full day in Locarno we headed for the hills to squeeze in one last gawk at the surrounding mountains before we left the region. The first stop was Modonna del Sasso, a short funicular ride from Piazza Grande. This is a beautiful church perched on the rocks above Locarno that is currently undergoing restoration. You could tell by the work already completed that the results will be amazing when the restoration is complete.
A gondola and a (sideways facing) chairlift took us got the top of the mountain. The weather cooperated so we passed the afternoon drinking beer in the sun with the local ski bums. It was a perfect way to wrap up our visit to the Swiss Alps.
On to Torino for nearly a week with some day trips out to Milan and other nearby sites.
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