Because of the travel ban due to Covid, a lot of us are stuck at home. We are itching to go places but can`t . I should have been
in Italy, on Lake Como, enjoying a a garden trrip to the Italian Lakes. So, when I knew I couldn`t go, I contacted my friend and the best guide in Bellagio, Rita Annunziata .
Those of you who have taken my trip to the Italian Lakes surely remember Rita, the bubbly, knowledgeable and extremely competent guide
who shared her knowledge and took us around during our stay in Bellagio. She was going to be our guide this year too.
Rita lives in Bellagio and has been on lockdown for the past 50 days like most ot us in Europe. She told me that the authorities had
recently loosened restrictions and she was now allowed to leave her home. In fact, the owner of the Villa
Melzi had decided to open the gardens to the residents of Bellagio. This, we agreed, is a good thing as gardens, like
people, like to be admired and there will no tourists in Bellagio for a while yet.
Rita generously agreed to film her next visit on her smartphone and to send me some footage to share with you.
Villa Melzi is located right on the shores of the Lake and the garden cascades down towards the water. The neoclassical Villa was built
at the turn of the 19th century by the then Vice President of the newly founded Republic of Italy. Francesco Melzi d´Eril (1753-1816). By all accounts it is one of the grandest and most
beautiful gardens on Lake Como.
The garden is directly accessible from the village of Bellagio, along a grand avenue of Sycamore Trees, (Platanus Europea), clipped like
candelabras to provide the visitor with shade. The walk is quite magical
Late last week Rita was able to go to the Villa. The house is always closed to the public as it is still used as a private home and
only the gardens are accessible.
Designed in the English style and decorated with Italianate and Egyptian scultpures, the gardens were designed by the architect Luigi Canonica and by the botanist Luigi Villoresi,
both responsible for the arrangement of Villa Reale park in Monza.
When she arrived at the house, Rita chanced upon the manager of the property. Not only did he invite her in but he led her
up to the roof, a place where even she, despite having lived all her life in Bellagio and being a guide for 33 years, a place where even she had never been before.
Here is Rita`s little film from the roof top.
A huge thank you to Rita for sending us this material. Like the rest of Italiy, Bellagio is currently closed to
tourists and the place is empty. Rita says 2020 will be a "local" year, where the locals will have the place all to themselves.
Perhaps in September, when the schools reopen, will it be possible to welcome some intrepid tourists again. 2021 will be a
better year for business, for sure.
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