Sirmione on Lake Garda, Italy

                Sirmione, Lake Garda and Scaliger Castle                                                                     

There is a peninsula at the southern end of Lake Garda, connected to the shores of the lake by a narrow isthmus of land. On this actual isthmus, like a romantic fantasy, the castle of Sirmione stands. This lake-edge story-book castle is surrounded by a moat,  with a channel leading into this which is deep enough for substantial fishing boats to make use of.

This is a grand castle, - a castle to admire. From its beginnings in the thirteenth century until today, it has retained all those features that make a true castle - the towers, the drawbridge, the moat, the crenelated battlements.  Handsome and much appreciated by those who come to view, it has not only withstood the weathers, it has also withstood the waters around its foundations for more than eight centuries now. This is Scaliger Castle.

The small village surrounding the castle where retainers and servants once lived has also remained intact. Now the village thrives as tourists flow through its winding streets, hunting through shops tucked into elderly stone houses converted to meet the needs of its visitors. A four-table cafe, a grocery shop overflowing with fruits and foods, liqueurs and lollies; an unadorned doorway opening into a church where locals kneel and candles flicker. The historic town of Sirmione may host many visitors but it remains a town of charm and history, with warmth, ambiance and much appeal.

The moat around the castle is wide and deeply turquoise in colour. An ancient stone wall protects the perimeter, and folk gather around this edge, leaning on the wall, chatting, whiling away the time watching the swans swimming effortlessly in the waters below. At one end the stone walls of the moat reach out all the way to the waters of Lake Garda, creating one of the few fortified harbours still in existence in Italy today.

As much a part of the lake as of the land, the castle and its stone walls form a defensive rectangle where boats retreat for shelter and protection from harsh weather, as well as from the hostile invaders and would-be conquerors of the past.

See also:

www.unusualstays.com ( A New Zealand chronicle of unique and unusual places to stay)

contact me via pippy.mccurdy@gmail.com

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