One of the perks of working in Germany are the 30 days of paid vacation that most full-time employees are entitled to every year. And one of the advantages of living in Heidelberg is its proximity to sexier places like France and Italy. From where we live, it is an hour to Alsace. And just a few hours to Lausanne in Switzerland, or to Como, in northern Italy, where we recently visited good friends for Easter. At least once a year I need to leave Germany. It does wonders for the soul to spend just a few days in another country. We had Easter brunch on a boat that drove around Lake Geneva as we feasted on salmon mousse, rack of lamb with sprigs of rosemary, wine, strong coffee, and a deadly chocolate dessert. On Easter Monday, we took a the long and winding road to Como, a journey that lasted several hair-raising hours as we snaked along narrow roads in the alps. In Italy, we stayed with our friends at their weekend house where I sat in the strong afternoon sun reading my novel, protected from the chilly wind by the veranda and blankets. This combination of blazing sun with frosty air is delicious and so typical of the alps at this time of year. For breakfast and tea we ate colomba – the Easter “dove” – a soft, yeasty cake plump with eggs and butter, and studded with candied peel.

Where else in the world can you buy one of a series of art books with each edition of the Saturday paper (Corriere della sera) for an extra 15 euros? Our friends had collected the lot. The most recent hardcover focused on 50s art – Franz Kline, Willem de Kooning, Jim Dine, Mark Rothko, and Helen Frankenthaler were some of the names I saw.

 

While in Como we took another boat to visit the town of Torno, where we have often stayed at the Hotel Vapore. At this time of year there are only a few tourists staying at the B&B in the village square. In summer the village has more to offer. The first time we stayed at the Hotel Vapore, we awoke to open the shutters and discover that we had a fantastic view of the lake.