bright autumn days in merano, last year.
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Category: in italy
october felt like a dizzying roller coaster.
it started with a 2-week stay up north, because p’s mom took a tumble and needed a bit of help getting back on her feet. lots of running around and afternoons at the library, frantically trying to keep all the plates spinning. after that, we came south just in time to pack our bags for a long-anticipated trip to visit our bolzano friends, who have been tempting us for years with photos of their alpine adventures… and boy, did they ever deliver! the scenery was gorgeous, the time of the year was perfect, and we hiked, camped, slept, ate and talked to our heart’s content. probably one of the best weeks of the year so far, and we so needed it.
we left the alps a bit teary-eyed, and jumped right into the warm hugs of all our bielefeld friends for a few days, before returning to the south with our friends O&Z, in order to show them a bit of our algarve — including a dip in the ocean, as they had never swam in one before!
dear october, you were intense. in the future, let’s try not to do ALL THE THINGS at the same time, k?
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sleeping on a mountain hut
ever since our hikes in slovenia, i’ve wanted to sleep on a mountain hut at least once — i’ve even put it on the list. knowing this, our friends in italy worked their magic and chose the perfect spot to make it happen on our recent trip to the alps. and it was better than i had imagined it to be!
the four of us + frido and casca hiked for a couple of hours to reach the top of the hill where the hut was, sheets still hanging to dry on the wire.
our rooms were simple, without electricity but high on coziness and beautiful views of the rosengarten.
from every window (and there were many), you could see the dolomites all around us. reality feels so far away here, when you’re sitting on a wooden bench looking at the valleys below, disconnected from the world and just taking it all in from the top of this little mountain.
and we came just in time for sunset too, catching the golden hour at its loveliest.
inside, we had a fire going and comfort food waiting for us: soups, knödel, goulash, potatoes with bacon and eggs, and kaiserschmarrn!
i read an absolutely remarkable thing on my kindle by the candlelight, and fell asleep in peace with the world.
when morning came, the sun rose behind the mountains while homemade delights made their way into our corner table, strengthening us for the day of hiking ahead of us.
i wrote a few postcards from the mountain top, trying to convey put the whole thing into words… but failed miserably. i don’t think words are enough. you have to try it for yourself, at least once. go! :)
we went wild camping in italy, and thus scratched another item off the list!
our friends are camping aficionados and had all the gear to accommodate us newbies. i confess i didn’t get much sleep, but the whole experience more than made up for it. we pitched the tents, collected wood and made a fire, and then cooked dinner on it, including a brilliant recipe of chocolate-stuffed banana! :D
the fire was so hypnotic… we looked a bit like zombies, spacing out with the flames dancing in our eyes.
and then in the morning, we woke up to this view and the autumn leaves falling all around us.
in the end, i’m not sure camping is for us, but i really enjoyed this light version of it, probably because the place was so peaceful and scenic. maybe next time we’ll pick a more level place to put our tent! :D
taralli was one of the best discoveries of our latest trip to italy. they are southern snacks and the version we tried was both salty and spicy, as well as extra crunchy from all the almonds in it. they look somewhat soft in the photos, but they’re actually quite hard and break into pieces when you bite into them.
it was delicious, and i wish we had the forethought to bring back a couple extra bags because the one we got was finished way too quickly… :( i shall be thinking of these rings of deliciousness until our next visit!