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Pat Walsh
Pat's Peeps Podcast
Ep. 242 Today's Peep Stresa Serenity: A Day Off in Italy's Most Beautiful Town
That's Peeps, podcast 242. Listen to the beautiful bells. This is such a beautiful, beautiful town, estreza, at Lake Majore. I know I've talked about it on the previous podcasts. Honestly, it's the most relaxed place I've ever been. They're in season right now, so there are more vehicles than usual. The last time I was here it was at the end of the season and there were very few vehicles. There were very few people here, but but I can't really imagine a more beautiful and relaxing place than we are right now. And we're just standing outside of the regina palace hotel, uh, in stresa, and we're walking by the. I say we, ryan and dan, we're just taking a break here and looking at the lake. You know what we decided to do today Ryan Harris joining me.
Speaker 2:Nice to be with you.
Speaker 1:We decided this morning at least, I know. I woke up and said you know, I think this is the one day that I'm going to take off and I'm just going to kind of relax. They're going to Lake Como today and it's a beautiful place. Take a ferry out there. It's gorgeous. But the water is much rougher today on the lake because the wind is blowing just a little bit Not bad but it's kind of raining. And you know, we haven't really had a day where we could just sort of relax and not really be at any place at a certain time. And don't get me wrong, ryan right, the places that we're going are exquisite, that's. I love being there, they're beautiful. I'm so happy to see him, but it's nice to have a off day.
Speaker 2:100, you know just sit around and not. I'm totally with you and you know we love conservative tours, but they do pack a lot in and for somebody who wants that, that's a great thing. For guys like us who like to take a break, we have to pick which day. We're okay with missing whatever, so we can take a day off and that's also okay. And that's one of the beautiful things about these trips with conservative tours You're not required to go on any of the stuff. That's right, so you can take whatever day you want and take a day to just relax. Terry and Tammy took yesterday off when we went to Milan.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And they had a massage and spa treatment and a day of room service. Terry came down in a robe to the restaurant and ordered breakfast room service to their room.
Speaker 1:I mean, it was beautiful, for them and she told me that they came in with all this linen, they had a tray, they had all the stuff on there. She was checking the bill. It was a $60 charge, but look what they got and they got that beautiful service. You know, this morning this is a Sunday Again Pat's Peeps 242. If you've been listening while we're on the, you know we try to do it every day, but the fact is we missed a couple of days just because you know it's a long day sometimes.
Speaker 1:And quite frankly, you're kind of ready to hit the sack.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean, I sacked out. I was asleep by 8, 830 last night. Woke up again for a little while, but I was out most of the night, dan is back down at the hotel.
Speaker 1:Dan's got a little bit of a knee injury so we decided you know the heck with it, let's just relax today because this is again being Sunday, it's our last day of the trip before we head back to the airport tomorrow. It's funny, you know, because I'm blessed to right now. I've mentioned before this is my sixth trip with conservative tours and it's a true blessing to go on these trips and take your friends and be with your friends and meet new friends and all of that. But there's like so it's been like every five or six months. So I have a little anxiety. I begin to count it down in my head. You know, oh gosh, four months, three months, before you know it. It's time.
Speaker 1:And all this anxiety that I have of flying or what have you, or being at an airport, quite frankly, you forget about it as soon as you get here, because it is, it is just beautiful. You just forget your cares. And you know, right now, everyone's been coming up to me and saying hey, pat, we heard your podcast and the loss of your son and my condolences, and I've heard other people that have gone through the same thing, had to be through those same experiences and all of us have said this is the place we can go, and it sort of takes your mind off of it for a little bit and allows you to relax. How are you doing, danny boy? I'm doing pretty well.
Speaker 1:How's the knee?
Speaker 3:Well, as long as I don't have stairs, I'm in good shape, I can walk. I just can't do the stairs.
Speaker 1:That's the killer, but you've been walking pretty good on the road. I've been walking pretty good. Yeah, we were walking in Estreza. They have these little, the little town, and it's just so beautiful. It's like cobblestone and brick streets. They have really nice, you know, little stores with fashion. I came across this place called David's Shoes and these are all handmade Italian shoes that this guy makes the owner of the store. He makes them by hand. And you know my whole life. I've heard of, you know, fine Italian leather shoes. You know from Italy. I've heard of you know, fine Italian leather shoes, you know from Italy.
Speaker 1:And as I've gotten older and older, now in my upper 30s, now, I begin to realize, geez, I want to dress nice, you know, and I want to look good. Thanks for the chuckle, Dan, You're welcome, Thank you for that. And so I found the most incredible shoe store and again it's got the stamp on the bottom where they make it right here locally. And I was trying to find a particular pair of shoes and in a particular blue color. Oh my God, they have them in the window. It's just floored me. And not only that, they had them in black. And now I'm trying to reason, like why, when they opened at 10 o'clock or noon today, which is another thing I can we'll talk about. I'm trying to figure out why would I not go in there and buy this other pair of shoes Now they ship them to the United States. They have shipping costs Now, huh, but you have to add shipping costs, you do? But I'm going to go back and buy them. At least I'm considering it.
Speaker 3:So I'm trying to justify it so I'm trying to justify it Right.
Speaker 2:I got a hundred bucks as he buys those shoes.
Speaker 1:I'm not taking that bet. We're going to go to Sicily in the fall and I swear I'm going to dress up, man, I'm going to go nice shoes, I'm going to wear at least a couple. I don't want to say every day, but a couple days. I want to wear a double-breasted. I want to look. You know, on the trips to the Godfather, on the Godfather tours, we were walking through a plaza. This is how I was really inspired. I got to wipe off my phone. Here. It's getting wet hold on there. We go, we're walking through, and someone said they said look at this guy sitting on the steps. He must be. Where were we? San Gimignano, Not San Gimignano, I can't remember. Anyhow he goes. Oh, it was Siena, it was in Siena. And somebody goes look, it's got to be the mayor of the town and I look over you see that guy.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, this old dude right, he was wearing like like a I mean just like a pinstripe double-breasted. He had the hat, like the old school hat, and he is smoking a cigar. He looked like the most important person in the town, in Siena, you know, and it was just very inspiring to see this guy. We're walking around this morning trying to find a place that's open for, uh, breakfast and forget about, forget about it, forget about it. Hey, you want the, but it hasn't got nothing. We always sleep in and uh, so that's what we're out here doing trying to find some place to eat, but I don't really think they kick things off till what noon?
Speaker 1:noon yeah so you can hear people walking down the street with their suitcases. Here we go, enjoy this sound that could be a, wasn't that delightful. Uh, what else can we talk about? What are we forgetting to talk about here?
Speaker 3:yeah, well, how about the time I almost got into a fight? You almost got in a fight here. Yeah, what when were we? Ryan?
Speaker 2:Right by La Galleria de la Academia, where the Statue of David by Michelangelo is. We were right outside the Galleria.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we were trying to catch up with the group. Ryan's behind or Ryan's in front of me. We turn a corner and Ryan's, you know they put those really cheap printed paintings on the ground.
Speaker 2:Oh, yes, yes, yes, on the ground they're just paper.
Speaker 3:They're on the ground. They have like eight of them four across here, another four behind them Right in the walking path, right in the walking path, right in the walking path, and Ryan walks to the corner, steps on him, and this guy's like oh, and he's like.
Speaker 1:You stepped on him.
Speaker 3:You didn't see him. He thinks like, oh my God, you just did the worst thing ever. And Ryan's like I'm sorry, I'm sorry, and I'm like we've got to catch up because we've lost the crowd I mean our group ahead of us somewhere. I'm like let's go, let's go. And the guy starts telling Ryan he needs to pay for the stuff he stepped on. So Ryan starts to get out money and I'm like no, no, no, dude, let's go, let's go, let's go.
Speaker 2:And the guy just keeps following us and he says give me 70 euro. Do you have? What do you have? What do you have?
Speaker 3:No, and he just kept following us.
Speaker 2:I'm not doing that, dan walked right up to him with fury in his eyes and he said F off.
Speaker 3:Without saying I didn't say F, but yeah, that's what I said.
Speaker 1:What did you say?
Speaker 3:I just went right up to his face and told him to F off, using the real word and he… Notre Dame fans.
Speaker 1:Heck, yeah, go Irish. Oh God, I feel at home. Sorry, dan, that's okay.
Speaker 3:And he put up his fist out in front of his office.
Speaker 1:Like Notre Dame. That's perfect. He put his fist out.
Speaker 3:He put his fist up and I just looked at him and just walked off. He put his fists up to fight you.
Speaker 2:But he didn't follow us anymore what?
Speaker 3:He didn't follow us anymore after that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and it wasn't just that Dan came up and yelled, dan got right in his face. They were nose to nose.
Speaker 3:Because it was a scam. The whole thing was a scam.
Speaker 2:They put him on the ground, so people step on him, and then they make them pay for it.
Speaker 3:It's a complete scam.
Speaker 2:And they'd just gone over to the local print shop and ran off a thousand of them. And I saw the guy talking to the boss later and the boss was reading him the riot act for not getting any money he was absolutely well, I hope I don't see him again, and that's yeah.
Speaker 3:When we went to the museum we ended up standing in a line. I walked right past him. He didn't see me, but I was like as close to you and me to him when we were walking back in line to go into the museum oh wow, I'm glad he didn't see any.
Speaker 1:We don don't need anything like that. You know, you really don't see anything like that over here. I mean, I hate to say it, we're so. You know, I'm sorry.
Speaker 2:Well, we're staying in nice rare areas too, you know.
Speaker 1:Yeah, but we're so aggressive in the United States. You know, in the United States I mean you literally could have. I mean I don't know, I mean you literally could have. I mean I don't know, I don't mean to, I'm just saying that people are more aggressive. You know, the only aggression I have seen on the whole trip, and I mean I've only seen two times where any one I was just watching Dan, you and I were watching, and Jody and we were in Italy, in Rome, and someone had a road rage. The driver just goes. Remember that that's the only thing I've seen. But then a couple of mornings ago, ryan and I, they were all loading the bus, the coach coming out of a hotel Leaving Florence right Big city, and so they don't want any beverages.
Speaker 1:You know open cups on this coach, which, of course, is understandable. So Ryan and I had a couple of minutes while they're loading the luggage into the side of the coach and we're sipping our coffee in our little to-go cups out on the street you know this is early in the morning. It's right in front of the hotel and right in front of, on the other side, our apartments where people live, right. So there's a little traffic jam. This you've got to remember traffic jam. This is a very narrow street and these guys are driving some kind of a work truck, yeah, something, Some kind of box truck or something, and their idea of getting the traffic to go is to lay on the horn.
Speaker 2:So he just and this goes on for 30 seconds or more, and I'm just talking to Ryan- and keep in mind too taller buildings on either side on this narrow street, so extra loud, extra loud right and echo.
Speaker 1:You can hear an echo, whereas you may not hear someone usually. I just said to ryan I go, this is uh, I go. Well, I'm sure laying on your horn for 30 seconds, that'll help the situation and wake everyone up. The driver looks out the window. Am I going to curse again? I'm like no, just.
Speaker 2:I'm going to yeah F you.
Speaker 1:I'm like and that's the only aggression I have ever seen. Had we been in America, had this been two other people, F you, F you. You know it could have been road rage, a fight, whatever. Who?
Speaker 3:needs it, man, yeah, and you know me. I am not, I am. I am the most. I am polite to everybody. I would never do that, no.
Speaker 2:Very easy going I have traveled the world.
Speaker 3:I have seen the scams. It was obvious. It was a scam. You know, and I'm just not, I don't have time for that, Don't you know? You're holding us up.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it took me a minute, but eventually I caught on when, that's when I told the guy no, I'm not doing that.
Speaker 3:Yeah, no, it's a complete 70-year-old for something you printed at the strip shop. It took me a second.
Speaker 2:But you know, and then I'm standing there telling, finally telling the guy no, and out of nowhere. Here comes Dan, the Hurricane Nap right in the guy's face.
Speaker 1:And I will vouch for Dan, Like you could not get a more mellow, easygoing guy than Dan. I mean, I've pretty much never seen Dan do anything like that, but I'm glad you did it, man.
Speaker 2:As am I, because you know I needed a partner there for sure, because if the boss had come around we'd have been outnumbered, yeah, or if any of his other homeboys had come around, you know. And so I was glad to have Dan on my six there, as they say, uh. But it really surprised me, honest to goodness, surprised me, uh, to see Dan. And I will, I must say, because you know, I didn't know Dan, you've known Dan, say because I didn't know Dan. You've known Dan for decades and I didn't know Dan until we traveled together to southern Italy last year. What a great guy, great traveling companion. I couldn't have asked for better. Hate it that you're not going to Sicily, because, fingers crossed, I'll be there and it won't be the same without you. Thank you, it will not.
Speaker 1:I told him that. So you're just a great guy to hang out with and travel with Wherever we're going next spring.
Speaker 3:I'll be in that one.
Speaker 2:At that point I'll have had to hit the lottery. But that's okay, because Ken's tours conservative tours worth every penny oh yeah, we stay in beautiful places most of the time. That first night last year in Casino at the Best Western, where not only I mean I'm hashing back to last year's trip- the Best Western. That first night, after the Abbey at Monte Casino, they put us in a Best Western.
Speaker 3:I don't remember that, yeah it was absolutely a Best Western.
Speaker 1:Okay, listen. Okay, when Ryan's, I'm going to interrupt your story. So as you say that, first of all, I have no idea what the Best Western when? So as you say that, first of all, I have no idea what the Best Western is when you come to confirm you're not staying at the Motel 6 in the Best Western, that's not. If you saw the Regina Palace we're staying in front of you'd go well, that ain't. So this must have been a very nice Best Western.
Speaker 2:Well, it was a decent place. And to Pat's point, that was going to be my you around. You know me. I've got to go a long way around to a point I can't just get right to it.
Speaker 1:Well, it kills time on my podcast.
Speaker 2:Well, that helps that helps, but I did want to just briefly tell the story. The Best Western was perfectly comfortable, the bed was comfortable, it was clean and it was just for one night. But I kept. First of all, every time somebody would flush I could hear it, and then I kept hearing a sound that I could have sworn sounded like a trout flopping around in my toilet and I would get up to go look I couldn't figure out what it was.
Speaker 2:Honest to God, pat, this is what the thing sounded like in my room. And then I'd hear it and I'd get up to go look, and I couldn't figure out what it was, but I would keep hearing the sound. I thought, oh, thank god, we're only here for one night. But no, ken puts us. Like the Regina Palace here in Streza, one of the most beautiful, most ornate, built in 1908, this hotel. So that architecture, italian architecture, from right after the turn of the century, the turn of the 20th century. And this is everybody in a sharp uniform. Did you notice that? I did notice All in the uniforms?
Speaker 1:How about the police? The three police officers that walked through that tunnel towards us yesterday? Yeah, I saw them. Looked like I don't know what you would call the bobbies.
Speaker 2:They kind of look like the English bobbies.
Speaker 1:They look like the.
Speaker 3:English bobbies, because I saw some in Florence and they were scary looking.
Speaker 2:They did not have the nice they had this like they looked like a stopover, sarah the tour guide yesterday did say they were private guards, not actual police, but guards for that fancy shop. I love it. Prada and Gucci and Louis Vuitton and you know, stuff that you know three out of a million people can afford, although you know some of us did some shopping in those places yesterday. Yeah, but it's Milan, so it's all the top shops, and so they have these fancy dressed security guards, basically.
Speaker 1:So one thing I really love, a couple of things I really, really love and I don't want to forget this, or I will if I don't say it now about not just the group and the people that we're traveling with, which is so wonderful, but two other things. One I love it when we're, when you're, so into a vacation that you don't even know what day it is. Now, like I don't know what day this today. We know because today's our last day here, so we know that today is Sunday, people are in church, but generally, you know, we don't even care what day it is. You know. No one ever asks. I don't think we keep track.
Speaker 1:The other thing, on a personal note, that I love, one of the things I really love about being here and truly reduces stress. Well, now I'm thinking of two things. I've never turned a television on ever being in any of these countries. Not one single time have I watched TV. But the idea and the feeling that none of us are really used to in the United States of not hearing about Newsom and Trump and politics and Kamala Harris and Nancy all this stuff you don't even care about it.
Speaker 2:You just need a break from all that and you just don't care. While you're here, no stressa in stressa.
Speaker 1:No, it's just such a blessing to not even have to hear it. You know, it's not that we don't care what's happening in our country, but to take a break from the continuous coverage of bickering and division and politics yeah, it almost makes me never want to do it on my radio show again now. Once you get back, you know you start life and up life kicks back in.
Speaker 2:Yeah but here's how I describe, so you know, for the folks at home they understand what a week at a cabin on lake tahoe is like. Picture that on relaxation steroids and that's what you have here in in a place like stress. Or when we were in uh, santa margarita liguri, over on the italian riviera again, looking out over the water, I was up watching the sunrise every day. And it we're in Santa Margherita Liguri, over on the Italian Riviera, again, looking out over the water. I was up watching the sunrise every day and it was drinking my coffee and enjoying life and it's just fabulous and that's what you get. That's one of the best parts of going on one of Ken's trips with conservative tourists.
Speaker 1:And he's right about the Tahoe thing. But the only difference is you don't have buildings like this in Tahoe, these buildings, if you were to. You know I've showed you all a bunch of videos. You know tons of videos since I've been on the trip. But we're looking down onto Lake Majul, right, and we went to an island and we're looking at this island. Now, how far far they said it was 25 how far the island can't, it's so narrow. Uh, it's called isobela, isola bella, and we were over there, we took a boat over there. That's the other thing I'm very proud of, I bet on three boats here good job.
Speaker 1:Thank you, brother. I mean, I three boats man, I have no problems done this. But the, the lakes and the water have been pretty calm. So to go to this island. So we're over this island. Was it the island with Napoleon Smith? Oh, no.
Speaker 2:First, of all, that was the first island. What do they call that island? It's not called Borromeo Island, but that's where Borromeo Palace is so St Charles, borromeo, so Jana and her sister.
Speaker 3:Carolyn.
Speaker 1:See, I can't think of her name because I keep thinking of Carolyn. It's a whole inside joke. They and I both went to St Charles Borromeo. That's where I made my first communion. We talked about that on a previous podcast, but because I wasn't listening, we have these things called a whisper, so it's a little box. You turn it on, you put it in your ear and you listen to them as they're giving you a tour, a guided tour. Well, I don't really do it that much, for one reason I've already heard a lot of it, but some of it I hadn't. But it kind of hurts my ear to put this particular earbud in. But anyhow, apparently this is the summer home for St Charles Borromeo and I'm thinking we were at St Charles Borromeo's summer home and then, wherever you just said we were, we're walking through this palace or whatever it is, and here is right on the water, and here's Napoleon's bed, right One night In the Borromeo Palace, yeah.
Speaker 3:He slept there one night and they didn't really like him, right. So they told him the environment was dangerous, right? I don't know what they were, I missed that part he was burning down buildings. They told him the environment here is very dangerous. He left the next morning.
Speaker 1:Yeah, he said there's like disease, rampant disease. Oh, I've got to get out of here, I guess, but just the fact to be a saint's summer home, okay, that's not every day, and the family also had a pope in it too.
Speaker 2:Yes, right. Who wasn't St Charles Borromeo, you know, it was a different Borromeo that was put, and this guy, I think, was the offspring, if you can imagine, of a Borromeo and a de Medici, oh yeah, so two of the most prominent families in all of Italian history, and this guy was the offspring of them and then became Pope.
Speaker 1:Wow, yeah, that was very special to walk through and and the other thing that they have done is just set us up so nicely on this trip. We've just had the best rooms. Do we have any Italian music you guys want to find? Surprise me on your phone with some Italian song.
Speaker 2:I'll come up with something, but in the meantime can we I tell?
Speaker 1:you. What can we walk and cast?
Speaker 2:Let's walk and cast, Because a 17 minute walk that way there's, I think I found us a place to eat. They're open and it looks like it's got some decent food and the ladies have just walked by.
Speaker 1:I'm saying attractive, can I just go that route?
Speaker 1:They just whack me with the umbrella Okay here's the other thing, and I'm going to say it man, I'm telling you, in Italy, just like in France and just like in Germany, the people well, I'm going to throw Germany out of the mix, because too many of them wear the lederhosen, and I don't even want to think of Ryan or Dan or myself in lederhosen, no thanks but they dress impeccably. People, if you walk around Italy or if you go through France, paris not only, and it was one of the first things I ever noticed traveling people are slim and people are dressed, even if it's casually dressed.
Speaker 2:Oh, look at these beautiful flowers. Are you serious? These are tulips, and so they probably come from Holland, and so they probably come from Holland.
Speaker 1:Okay, I'm going to shoot a video of this and I will post it, because you need to see these gorgeous tulips next to this fountain.
Speaker 3:I took pictures of the tulips and sent them to my wife because they're her favorite flower. When we were at the castle and outside the garden there was all these tulips like this. Let's pull up in that town Shooting a picture for the food.
Speaker 1:Well, these are, oh God, it just. Here's another thing about Italy. Seriously, everywhere you turn, everything is a picture. Listen to the bell. I'm going to be quiet, listen.
Speaker 1:You know you get a million videos and pictures and you want to show them to your friends. I don't know how many friends are going to stand and look at an hour of you showing them pictures, but you take them anyhow and you know what. Listen to that. I don't even need them really Sometimes, because the memory is so, so wonderful and beautiful. You should see I'm looking at this as a different hotel next to ours. You should see, I'm looking at this as a different hotel next to ours, and the grass in front of this hotel and there's a restaurant is Absolutely the most perfect grass I've ever seen. It almost looks fake and they have Furniture that you can sit on out here on this grass in the midst of these beautiful tulips. It is gorgeous. Let's play that. There you go. Let's finish it up on this note. Who's got that playing? Oh my, you could not have picked a better song.
Speaker 1:Ryan Harris, oh my God, my man, my most listened to artist, dean Martin. Okay, so listen. We do look forward to getting back home, dean Martin. Okay, so listen, we we do look forward to getting back home, but this is an unforgettable experience. Please think about it. We're going to Sicily in November. I mean.
Speaker 1:October into November, beautiful Sicily, godfather tours and all that. It's the Pats Peeps group, with Danny Boy and Ryan Harris on a Sunday morning from beautiful Stresa Lake Major. Thank you for listening, pats Peeps 242. Bonjour, bonjour, ciao, ciao.
Speaker 2:Ciao, ciao, I'm a lover.
