Casa Rosa

Casa Rosa in Faggeto is a beautiful Italian home close to Lake Como. Staying there felt like stepping into an earlier, slower way of life. I cooked on the lovely large white marble counter, washed dishes in the porcelain sink by candlelight on the old kitchen fireplace, and listened to Italian music on the radio. From the kitchen and dining table, you can see the ancient Mulattiera per Lemna pathway. There’s still wifi, though. Rosa is lively and full of local knowledge, always ready with helpful information. The bathroom has a deep, square white tub with a shower, and all three beds had crisp, professionally laundered white sheets. Faggeto is a small village. The church is closed, but its bells still mark the time. There aren’t grocery shops on the lake side, so we stocked up at the Esselunga supermarket in Como, where there’s a whole aisle of dried pasta. Como’s train stations are great, and the ferries are well organized. The little port and jetty, where boats stop according to the published timetable, are down 100 steps on Mulattiera per Lemna, by the food truck and swings. Google Maps was useful at first. One flight up the path, by the zebra crossing on the main road, is the covered C130 and C131 bus stop. The buses go to Bellagio, or the other way to Como San Giovanni and Stazione Lago train stations. My phone says Lake Como is at 200m elevation. Casa Rosa is 100 steps up at 220m, and the bus stop on the main road is at 270m. Higher up, past Molina and Bicogno, is Palazzo. At 540m, with a great view, there’s Casa del Combattente, Palanzzo, a Bar / Ristorante / Pizzeria with amazing food and a kind, professional, passionate chef. It’s the final stop on the C131 hairpin route. Have a plan to get home, as the last bus back down the mountain is around 7pm. There’s also a weekend shuttle in summer. We rented sun loungers at the Faggeto Lido and enjoyed the warm August lake water, hot pizzas, cool sparkling wine, and frozen Magnums. Reserve a lounger on the website in advance, with a rainy-day refund option. Anyone can use the decked cafe bar. We enjoyed the natural surroundings, too. Driving down from Palazzo at dusk, we saw a black boar. On quiet mornings I heard an Eurasian Blackcap, Western House Martin, and European Greenfinch, using a bird identification app. A fragrant white gardenia was flowering in the garden. The fisherman in our family caught small and medium fish and returned them alive to the lake. From the kitchen window I spotted a neighbor’s grey cat, almost invisible against the Mulattiera per Lemna steps. With fresh lakes and lush mountains all around, expect the usual mosquitoes and so on: one of us wasn’t bitten, while another was devoured. The air always felt fresh and life-affirming. A great trip. Thank you, Casa Rosa.