Trip to Italy (for work)

Last fall, Smith sent me to Italy to work with one of our suppliers on a compliance issue. I had been to Italy a couple of times before when I worked for DFG but I didn't think I would get that chance again so I was very surprised. Italy is a very beautiful country with amazing things to see but obviously, for most of the time I was doing things for work. The town I stayed in is called Varese, which is about a half hour north of Milan. Each day after I finished my work responsibilities I would try to take some time to visit some of the local sites, which included Sacro Monte di Varese (a local church/monastery dedicated to the 12 stations of Christ), Palasso Estense (a palace that was located in the town center that is now a public park), The church of San Vittorio, which is the main church located in the heart of the town. The church even has an amazing bell tower that still operates and chimes on the hour and half hour. One of the highlights of my trip was renting a bike and riding around Lake Varese. The trail made a loop around the lake and was approximately 27 km long (I think it took me about 2 hours to ride the circumference).

Below are a few photos of the area where I was..

 This is part of the bike path around the lake Varese

 A random church that I saw while going around the lake

 A fisherman with a pole (not a fishing rod like we use)

 Various houses I saw while touring around the lake

 This was the clock / bell tower that was in the center of the town

 A reflection pond at Palasso Estense

 Swans in a lake that was part of Palasso Estense

The church at the top of Sacro Monte

A monument at the top of Sacro Monte

 An outdoor restaurant in downtown  Varese

 Cobble stone road

More from downtown  Varese with the bell tower in the background

 an overview of the mountains from the top of Sacro Monte

My bike ride route around lake Varese