Festa dell' uva e del vino- Bardolino, Italy

On Saturday we went to Bardolino, a small town on Lago di Garda (the biggest lake in Italy). It was about a three hour drive from Lugano, especially with the traffic that was caused mostly by people heading to Gardaland. Supposedly, it is the best amusement park in Italy. After a few turns around the roundabouts we ended up on the right road heading to Bardolino. We were in awe of the beauty as we drove into the town. It is on the coast of Lake Garda, in between the Lombardia and Veneto region. The area was covered with vineyards and olive groves. It looked similar to Toscana, except the hills weren't as large and rolling and there were no sunflower fields. You could also see the mountains surrounding the area with snowcapped peaks. As we were driving in we saw a little tiny truck driving around the vineyards with load of fresh grapes just picked from the vine. I did my best to get a good shot! Once we parked we found the beginning of the festival easily. At the beginning we bought a wine glass that came with a special carrier that you hung around your neck. You wouldn't want to miss an opportunity to do something else while enjoying wine. The festival including wine from the region and tons of different food. We had these amazing ham sandwiches that came with this freshly fried bread. They also were making big pots of spumante risotto. Other tents had pastries, sugar glazed nuts, fresh licorice...you name it. It was the pictureque backdrop that made this festival unique though. We kept saying over and over how beautiful the setting was and what a gorgeous day it turned out to be. With the rain earlier in the week, we weren't certain about what the weather would be like. At about 4pm we decided to head back to Lugano. We would have stayed the night, but hadn't reserved a hotel room and they were all booked because of the festival.
Sunday was finally my day to sleep in and when I woke up it was another beautiful fall day. I decided I needed to figure out how the stairs work that lead down to the city from my house. I had been part way down, but not all the way to the lake. I ran down and around the lake and then back up the stairs. The sun was shining and it was a clear, crisp morning. It took about 45 minutes running and that including dodging a lot of older tourists walking along the lake front. Then we decided to go to a shopping center in Italy, near Como. Everything is Switzerland is closed on Sundays...but there's always Italy. We did some shopping there and then on the way home we stopped in Campione, which is on Lake Lugano opposite Lugano, but actually partly in Italy. There are so many quaint little towns that surround Lake Lugano.
Again, I was reminded this weekend of how difficult the decision will be for me to leave or stay. I know right now I need to just appreciate my situation and live in the moment. Sometimes (especially when I've had a lot of wine) I start thinking about having to make the decision and it feels like an emotional rollercoaster. I miss everyone at home so much and love my job there, but I also think living here is an opportunity I won't be able to have in a few years. There are definitely a lot of pros and cons. Oh well, nothing to worry about for awhile...