Days 18-20 – Desenzano del Garda, Italy

It had to happen. We had to leave Switzerland and say goodbye to our magical Lauderbrunnen apartment in the mountain valley. We took a short bus right outside our apartment to the train station. A quick cappuccino to go from the local bakery, and then we hopped a train to Interlaken, then to Spiez, and finally to Desenzano del Garda, Italy. There was a stark difference between our Swiss trains and our Italian trains. The kids said that the Italian train looked more like a subway but with way more seats and graffiti. Gone were our comfy, large leather seats, which reclined and were complete with individual lamps, and instead we had lime green hard plastic and windows that were so scuffed we literally could not see out.

Once we reached Garda, we stepped out into the stifling heat of Northern Italy and blinked in the hot August sun. After reading the bus timetables and checking Google Maps, we knew we needed to call an Uber. The sun was too hot, and the walk was too long with our packs strapped to our backs. Jen and I spend a lot of time looking for accommodations that fit our family, are close to public transport, or within walking distance, have access to laundry or space to cook, or at the very least store cold food. We have stayed in some charming spaces, and some others have taught us some lessons, but this stay I knew was going to be a special luxury. When the van pulled into the gated driveway, and the kids saw the villa, they all sucked in their breath and said, “Where are we?” “Do we get to stay here?”

That was fun. We are in a beautiful apartment with air conditioning. There are courtyards with pomegranates, apple trees, and large cacti. An antique table is laid with fresh flowers in the covered courtyard, with lemon water, and fresh rolls and croissants, which are endlessly replaced throughout the day.  Bougonvilla climbs several walls and stretches lazily over railings. Stone tables and seating areas are spread throughout, and there is a blue pool overlooking Lake Garda. An olive grove surrounds the pool and dips down the sloping bank towards the lake. Thick aromatics of rosemary waft through the air. Packs were dumped, suits were donned, and we were off to the pool for the afternoon. 

Dinner was out at a terrible restaurant. Most places don’t open until 6:30pm or later, so we chose the first place that seemed nice and was open. Poor choice. We did have a beautiful walk through the old town, and some incredible gelato that made up for the disappointing dinner.

8/17/25

Today was not our usual Bauer vacation day, but it was fantastic. Addison got up early with the twins and took them down to grab bread rolls and croissants before going with them to the pool at about 8:30. Jen and I slept in! And then I made a quick cup of coffee, grabbed my own croissant, and ambled down to the pool. We did a bunch of nothing! I spent the day playing in the pool, sleeping, reading on my Kindle, and making lunch from rolls, meat, and cheese we picked up at a market last night. After an afternoon nap, I took a glass of white wine back down to the pool and found Addison, who had spent almost 10 hours lounging around the pool. Dinner was a weird combo of hard-boiled eggs, sushi rice, ramen, pickled ginger, and more wine. 

8/18/25

Why would we do anything differently than repeat yesterday? Well… because we wanted a nice lunch. We napped, we read, we played cards, we swam, and we walked into Desenzano del Garda. It is a steep incline down to the beach, which is thick with mostly Italian tourists. We walked into the center, had one of the most delicious meals from our whole trip in a restaurant Jennifer found, Alla Stella, and then walked back up the very steep hill to our lovely apartment for more napping, movies, and swimming.