Oh the quirks..errr...i mean, wisdom, of old people. Snail strolls, salon parlor games, 9:00 pm bedtimes and gas. Cute, silly but maybe not so cuddly. Who knew I wanted to vay-cay with Pa-Pa's and Ne-na's. I certainly didn't.
All the picture books, travel brochures, rumors and George Clooney NEVER reported that beatific Lake Cuomo, Italy, housed an ant farm of the elderly. Everywhere. In all the lakeside towns, shops, cafe and bars. The aged. The mature. The pushing 100+ crowd. Like swarms. And just as wasp nests discourage all outsiders, so have the wise sages of Lake Cuomo dissipated nearly all the young bucks still playing in their 20s and 30s. No, Ibiza this isn't. No Rio nor Miami Beach. THIS tiny enclave surrounding a very bellissimo, never to disappoint, lago in northern Italy is THE Florida of Europe - retirement playground for those seeking a too soon word with God. 
Hotel Britannia, in the lakeside town of Cadenabbia, proved the epicenter for those not only over the hill but through the woods and beyond...and simultaneously our lustrous lodging for a few days. Alas, old people or not, the Britannia excelled our expectations by enabling us to nest in a gargantuan, castle-like room fit for princesses. Sky-high ceilings, heavenly-like beds, enough red velvet to challenge Versailles and floor to ceiling windowed doors that opened out into a private balcony with views of utopia forced us to forget our creaky yet enthusiastic neighbors. Free proseco'd happy hour at 5:00 only enhanced our retirement home ambay-ance. Sometimes, without permission, a tiny breather is forced upon you...to ponder that you are in fact still breathing...and a mini-early retirement becomes quite welcome indeed. When this respite manifests itself in luxurious Lake Cuomo, shame on me to rag on the aged and elderly while fruity drinks, a soft breeze, the blue water and shaded mountain side surround me.
A geezerly burp to waken me occasionally? Who's to complain.
The one sighting and glimmer of youth. So young, so fresh, so baaaby.
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