Our first stop was Bellagio, where we cruised around the promenade and grabbed some gelato. Gotta give a round of applause to Strauss, who endured behind the wheel all weekend through narrow streets, turns, parking spots, and switchbacks. 
We stopped for lunch in a small town just north of Como on the lake. We had climed way up the mountain to eat at a recommended restaurant, only to find we arrived 3 minutes too late:-(. We made it to Locarno, which is on the north part of Lake Maggoire, having to pass border patrol into Switzerland on the way. Our hotel was in a great location, right outside the concert, which was great for quick bathroom breaks during the show! The pic below is where we had our picnic dinner overlooking the lake; we just didn't expect to see this sight (a big horn for such a little man):
After getting our Africa smile on (microbrewery with a nice heff and a red on tap), we made it to the show. We replaced the African smile stand with a real german beer girl:
Paul rockin it out. He played all the classics including some of his Simon and Garfunkel hits! It was a great show and the non-english-speaking crowd seemed to like!
It was cool because the crowd was so chill in that nobody pushed forward to the front. Erin could walk straight up with our beers without getting nudged or bumped, our places including ample room to dance as well. We met some Swiss girls named Susan and Ursula and their buddy Bruce.
The view of the town square was unbelievable. We will soon add a photo when it was still light out where the alps basically shoot straight up behind the old town, with its 18th century buildings.
Needless to say, it was an amazing show, definitely the coolest setting we have been in (no offense 1st ave or somerset), I suppose we should make it to Red Rocks some day. The next morning we stumbled out of bed and drove towards Isola Bella, make sure you choose the proper side of the island to navigate as the east side is hard to get to Isola Bella (via Stresa). We stopped for lunch in Laverno (I think) on the east part of Maggoire. Erin's pizza topped with arugula and parmasean (over bresola), yummy!
We (Strauss) had to drive around the southern part of the island to get around to Stresa as the ferries aren't too friendly if you are trying to power tour (as we were at this point; Sun pm). We made it though and got a boat to the island, touring the AMAZING palace and gardens (if anyone had the fortune to catch the PBS special that did a helicopter tour through Italy, this was the most majestic part of the show)!! A cool surprise was the grotto beneath the palace, whose walls, floors and ceilings were made completely of shells, coral, and pebbles, it was beautiful! 
Isola Bella is a palace built by the Borromeo family, construction began in the 1500's (wikipedia just to make sure if you are doing a 6th grade research paper).Approaching Isola Bella: 
Sister island (view from palace chapel (cathedral)):
View back to Stresa of terraced gardens: 
Sister island (view from palace chapel (cathedral)):View back to Stresa of terraced gardens: 
In the 20 HARD minutes of rain, the water engulfed the town was was into our wheel wells as we barely escaped the city, only to get stalled in a 7km long tunnel because lightening struck several trees and the TIMBERED across the freeway. We almost missed yet another flight! It was worth it though, an amazing weekend.
It was a pretty mellow saturday compared to some of our recent adventures, but needless to say, the day was spent celebrating and reflecting on the best year of our lives!
We cruised around the old town, with its cobblestone streets and 18th century buildings, through the city parks, and out to the new part of town, at the developed seaside, which is filled with trendy restaurants, swimming areas, and beach volleyball (for our single friends searching for their Swedish soul-mate). 
Afterwards we biked back to the old town, had a lunch and were off to the airport (timing was a little tight to say the least, thankfully we made it from Sweden to our gate at Cophenhagen airport in about 40 minutes....I don't recommend it!
Our first night, we trekked across the city to catch a light display at the reknowned Tivoli Park, an old-fashioned amusement park, but missed the show. Instead we wandered down Europe's longest pedestrian street with a 6-pack of Carlsberg in hand (drinking in the streets is encouraged. There are even beer stands next to public fountains.) and headed off for a late night evening at club Vega. When we sauntered out at 3:30am, it is like we had fallen asleep sipping martinis....it was soooooo light out. Here is a shot of Lou on the way home:
One of the best parts about our visit to the city was the jazz festival. Everywhere you went, whether a neighborhood square or the Rosenborg Have, the massive public garden, had a stage set up with really impressive jazz ensembles playing all of the crooning classics. 
Recent sunset from our apartment at 10:35pm.
Sure while we may get 25 mandated government holidays every year, not including Christmas and Easter...he he he.....we also deal with some of the more traditional modes of operation including......odd and early operating hours, archaic banking rules that forbid a wife from being added to her husband's account (this one particularly erks me when I have to ask for my allowance) and our latest grievance.....the cost of electricity. 
Lou and I had never seen a live polo match before so we were fascinated by the sport. Luckily, Mark (Sarah, too!) is a bit of an expert as a player and because his family is intertwined with the start of polo in Argentina. Each player needs between 4-6 horses each per game and usually changes horses at the end of each chaukre (quarter). Each player also has a range of mallets, as every horse is a different height. The mallets are made of bamboo.
On Saturday morning while Mark tended to his horses ahead of a match and Sarah got a picnic ready, Lou and I wondered around the charming little village they lived in including the church they were married in, local wildlife and an old phone booth.
During the day on Saturday, Lou and I explored the city of Cheltenham. It was a nice day to walk around, but the city itself was pretty lackluster compared to others we have visited so after a little bit of exploring we laid down in a park and took a little nap before Sarah and Mark picked us up to head to a bbq.
This was not the typical bbq. First off, the locale was a change from the standard deckside/driveway grilling as we were in a real, fully-functional horse barn. And instead of the traditional hamburgers and hot dogs, we grilled a massive peice of lamb. It was delicious. The following day (photos at top of post) we attended a professional polo match and had a picnic on the lawn with Sarah, Mark and their friends, capping off a wonderful weekend away.
On Friday afternoon, I had more visitors (and thank God cuz I missed my wife, who was back home (see previous post). My favorite sibling also showed up for the weekend. Hi Ho LISSA!!!! Lissa arrived on Friday afternoon, we grabbed a late lunch, and Joel, Lissa and I grilled out at Strauss' that evening, taking it easy.
After the jail we hustled our way to the Luas in the heavy rain, and of course the Luas (light rail) stopped about 3 blocks before the DART (Dublin Area Rapid Transit), so again it was to the rain to the train. We finally made it out to Howth, fairly damp, but alas, there is always a warm fire and autographed Little Jerry Seinfeld photos on the wall at the Cock Tavern! The name scared Joel too much, so we opted on the Ye Ole Abbey Tavern instead, which has good fish and chips and pours a nice pint of the priest. 
After we went on a short hike around the cliffs before returning to town to grab Joel, who decided to opt out of the medicore weather and have a few more beers.
We dragged him back to town to have a dinner at the Canal Bank Cafe, one of our favorites. We had a few more at the Schoolhouse bar before saying goodbye to my friends for now!
