Activities in Italy

Here's me getting ready for something really exciting...PARAGLIDING! The jump lasts about 20 min and costs Euro80. It's worth every cent. We were squeezed in the backseat of a tiny 4-wheel drive with 3 other instructors and plenty of gear. The winding and narrow gravel/dirt tracks up the mountain was an experience in itself. It was bumpy and temperatures fluctuated depending on whether we were in the shade or the sun. Anyway, the ride made me a little queasy already.

Then we had to hike for 10 minutes up a steep slope. Hee, I didn't have to carry anything except myself. The instructors took care of everything but the hubby took a load off them because Simoine was huffing under the 25kg load already.

We were supposed to run down this slope.

Waiting for the instructors/pilots Alessio and Simione to spread their wings. The other guy was around as a safety marshall I think. He only jumped later. Wasn't exactly sure what his role was. Maybe he would rescue us if we got stuck on a tree?

Anyway after being strapped up, I was supposed to run as fast as I possible could (which is very slow) the moment there was a breeze. My take-off was smooth. The moment Alessio said "RUN!", I took a few steps and then realized I couldn't touch the ground for a few seconds. Then I hit the ground, took two more steps and there....I was FLYING! 

[Hmmm, I wonder if I looked ridiculous air-jogging for a few secs.]

Here are aerial views while I was flying. It was pretty cold up there even with the strong sunlight.

A bad shot of Alessio, who was behind me. He kept flying higher and higher, in circles and it was difficult to use my camera. I was also slightly nervous at first. I kept thinking if we would make a sudden dip when there was no wind. Anyway, my worries were unfounded. It was smooth and relaxing, and I could sit down securely.

Alessio has been doing this for 5 years now. It was a hobby that became a full-time job. How lucky! 

Here's me looking really disheveled and ugly in a helmet. I had to admit all the circling and photography made my tummy churn a bit so I was a bit woozy here.

If you're in Riva del Garda, look out for these guys. A jump over the Garda lake costs Euro100 and lasts 30minutes, but you have to get a cable car up yourself.

And now for my favourite animals...

Nah, not this smelly pet pig. He's just calefare in the horses' stables.

Horseback riding! Here's Babsi who's a Halfling breed. She's 15 and had 6 kids already.

This 17-year old teenager works here during the summer holidays and takes tourists like us on rides.

The weather wasn't great. Yesterday when we were here, it poured so heavily that France flooded. Today, we embarked on our 2-hour ride in a slight drizzle. The temperature was about 12 degrees, in summer!! I was ill-prepared in the suitcase department. Thank God for my waterproof Gas jacket. Vroom vroom!

Along the journey, I found out the reason that 90% of the horses we saw were female. It's for the sick reason that the males are all killed for food and hide. How sickeningly AWFUL! How can people eat horses? They're companion animals, like cats and dogs! The few stallions that remain are for the breeding purposes. The French and Germans are mostly guilty of this horrible deed.

This place we went to was in Hafling, off Merano, which is north of Bolzano. Merano is a spa destination and these parts of Italy have German-speaking locals, which explains why my horse 'speaks' German. 

Horseback-riding is relatively affordable. Works out to be about Euro12 to 15 per hour only! If you book the whole day, it will cost Euro100. Much cheaper than Malaysia!

This is Gitti, my favourite among the 20 plus horses there. She is so manja! When I went from stable to stable to say hello, she was the only one who came to me straight away for some serious petting. She allowed me to stroke her muzzle right away and even licked my hands. I felt fully secure putting my hands past the grilles and walking right in to hug her. We sneaked in some carrots for her, but the other horses sensed it and soon the whole stable was filled with neighing and braying. Wah, very stress lah!

Incidentally, Gitti is for sale at Euro3000. I want!!!

These pictures were from another ranch further uphill. They have a mini farm of goats, ilamas and Shetland ponies.

The white horse seems interested in my leather belt, just like Gitti. What is it with them?

Finally here's what we do at night...a soak in the jacuzzi, in mineral water. Nice and warm 38 Celsius before bedtime.

Italy - Lake Garda

My plane was a new Boeing 777/400! Love the pretty night 'sky' and the big screen. Plenty of leg room too!

Arriving in Italy...First stop the Franciacorta Outlet Village at Brescia, off Milan. Shopping here was not bad. You can find Iceberg, Fornarina, Guess, Calvin Klein and some other shops. Discounts at some select shops were wonderful, but most offered 30% off retail prices. No need to break the bank here.

Hippo posing on my Hotel Cadria balcony. We were in the Valle di Ledro, somewhere north of Lake Garda. Mountains and lakes everywhere. Spectacular landscape. It's really cold when the sun goes down though. The hotel is run by an old couple who can't speak English. They understand sign language very well though haha! The service here was great, especially breakfast. You can request for fried eggs or zuppa de verde (soup) in the morning! The Italian owner accedes to every request!

Driving around in the vicinity of Lago di Ledro. It's a small but scenic lake. You need to have a strong stomach to drive around here. Formula-One-worthy bends tests your driving skills.

Love my Made in Italy green boots, which incidentally was bought at the Brescia Outlet Village.

It's really warm but the glacier lake feels icy cold. Okay...I know privato means "private" and I trespassed. :P

Here we are at Riva del Garda, and here is Lake Garda, a HUGE lake that's a haven for windsurfers. The cool breezes never stop here, and the waves keep crashing onto the shore. It looked too scary to try windsurfing since the last time I took a course was about 10 years ago.

You'd have thought it was a sea except for the swans. I tasted the water...confirm it's not salty one. They seem to like me but they are scared of the hubby. Maybe they think I have food. I hope they don't think my fingers were little sticks of breadstick.  


It was the first time I saw a family of swans. And also the first I saw a swan getting violent. You always think they are these serene, graceful creatures floating around in a lake. Wait till a dog walks past. I got to see the parent swan becoming all aggressive, making loud noises and stretching its neck to look very tall and stiff.

When this photo was taken, I felt really self-conscious. We were the only asians there and all these elderly retirees were eyeing us, some curiously, some indulgently. Like we were some exotic species from the other side of the world.

In the town Malcasine. I like this town. It's so Italian! There's a castle on the hill here you can get married in! And they sell quaint antiques and a lot of leather bags. I got a Francesca Biasia at half price! Yay!!

My own little truck. It really looks like a gigantic toy. 

Cool respite under the shady leaves and foilage.

Mandarin ducks everywhere. My mom's favourite animals.

Here's my little pony. Remember those days where we had those My Little Pony toys? This looks exactly like one of them. She is soooo sweet!

Finally, we arrive at our destination at sunset. Made too many stops along the way. But anyhow, here's VERONA, the city of Romeo and Juliet. If you think about it, it's ironic that Shakespear is English and he has never visited this city. He only picked it because of its background of feuding families.

 Ok, here's another castle. And me with my new bag. Couldn't wait to use it!

And here's what Verona is all about...the Roman amphitheatre that actually works and not in ruins like in Rome. They're having Puccini's opera Turandot at the moment and I could hear strains of soaring melodies from outside. The locals say that watching a performance here is an unforgettable experience.

 This dear old man offered to sew my name for me free of charge! He was so nimble with his sewing machine it only took a minute. It was amazing to watch.

Interesting intricate paintings on the buildings in this piazza.

Back to Lago di Ledro...

Me going all hiao at Mezzolago.

They have a delicious pizzieria called Al Lago which is overrun with locals. My pasta was soooo very very tasty. Notice all the tiny colored flowers on it. I'm eating pretty flowers! Needless to say, all the Italian fare was not good on my waistline.

Went swimming in the lake. Actually, that was the intention. It looked fun when we saw all these families frolicking in the waters. Nah NOT fun at all...I dipped my toes into the icy water and chickened out instantly. I'm 100%  tropical.

We decided cam-whoring on a berth was a warmer activity.

Here we are, back at Al Lago for another tasty dinner.

Alas! I ordered the wrong thing. I wanted my delicious vegetarian flower paste initially. Btw, the menu is all Italian and German. It was a eenni-manni-minni-mo random food-ordering exercise.

At Ranch di Nero, trying to get a day of horseback riding in he mountains. It was unfortunately raining :(

Here's the consolation prize. A cute 2 month old puppy! No horse, but at least I got to hug a pup.

Cleavage Caddy

Came across this smart contraption selling at $29.95 called the Cleavage Caddy. It comes in a choice of white, black and beige with a little "lace accent to spruce up your cleavage"!

Quite useful when you need to be hands-free, like clubbing. I'm not so sure if the objects will make for a lumpy silhouette or if ladies will need a bigger bra to contain all the barang barang. If you keep cash in there, just don't get caught fishing for it...most people don't appreciate boob bank currency with a hint of eau de prespiration.

I wonder if it will be more of a "pull-down bra" as opposed to the widely-used "push-up" ones. Don't think I'm about to find out anytime soon.

Flash The World Day

Today was Flash The World Day. I rode everywhere on my scooter in a short tight white skirt. I tried to be discreet about it so that I wouldn't leave a trail of devastation in my wake LOL. Obviously a case of bad wardrobe management. I just had to match my new Mango top with that skirt, even though I needed to take the Vespa in peak hour traffic to go places in a hurry.

It was quite paradoxical. I looked absolutely demure in my off-white outfit of lace and ribbons with coiffed long hair and white slingbacks, with a cute leather bag. Riding was the last thing anyone would expect of me. Sigh...need to get another car just for me, in view of general road user safety.

Jessica

Watching this little girl in action is inspiring. Look at how much Jessica believes her speech with her whole heart and how enthusiastic she is! We ought to take a leaf out of her book and do the positive 'Jessica' motivational "affirmation talk".  Btw, she's now 13.