Day 4- Lake Garda

We spent our 4th day in Italy at Lake Garda. If you know my husband at all, you know that he is a lake man. So, we decided to spend the whole day touring the southern end of the lake.

We started off our day in a town called Sirmione. Sirmione is located on a small peninsula at the southern end of the lake. When we crossed the drawbridge to enter the old town, we were greeted by Scagliera Castle. This castle was built in 1259 and was occupied by the della Scala family. It is easy to identify the castles which were owned by the della Scala family, because they all have the trademark fishtail battlements.We spent some time wondering around the castle and enjoying the view.After we left the castle, we walked a few minutes until we came to a beach front. Our day had begun with some drizzle and raincoats, but now the sun was shining brightly! We gave the kids a few minutes to wade in the water and throw rocks (Collin loved throwing rocks).We then walked along the path by the water for a few minutes until we came to a resort near the end of the peninsula. We enjoyed a nice lunch (pizza, of course!) with a beautiful view of the lake. One the way back, we walked alongside an olive grove, and we noticed (by smell at first) one of the natural sulfur springs that can be found under this part of the lake.We left Sirmione and headed to a town on the eastern-southern side of the lake called Lazise. We found a primo parking spot right on the water's-edge and took a stroll into the main tourist area. The town was packed with people, and the sun was warm! Boy, did it feel nice. And to make it even nicer, we all got a tasty gelato!! Yummmm!!!After walking around the village, the kids were anxious to get in the water. We had brought their swimsuits. The water was cold, but of course, the kids didn't care.After drying off and getting dressed again, we headed to our last destination for the day: Bardolino. Bardolino is another tourist town on the eastern side of Lake Garda. The village was just lovely. The cobblestone walkways were lined with cute, little shops. We walked down to the water and strolled along the boardwalk.After our stroll, we found a nice restaurant to eat at. Since it was my birthday, I splurged on a seafood risotto. Unfortunately, Collin didn't get the message that it was my birthday dinner, and so it was another tag-team eating experience. Thankfully, the sunset was lovely as we were taking turns walking around with him.It really was a beautiful day at the lake. The weather was perfect, the kids got to swim, and we all drove back to the agriturismo exhausted but content.