Northern Italy - Part II

Next stop on the Northern Italy tour was Cortina and the Dolomite Mountains.  This area is so spectacular that I couldn't stop taking pictures. Every turn of the road presented a wonderful picture and I am going to share them with you.  

Cortina (and Milan) will be the site for the 2026 Winter Olympics. It was also a filming site in the the James Bond movie "For your Eyes Only".  It is a typical ski town nestled in a box canyon and full of Swiss chalet type buildings throughout the valley.  The roads are winding and narrow.  It is like Aspen, Colorado only with more money. Most everyone spoke Italian, English and German. Even the menus featured three languages.

We took the gondola up to midway on the ski hill. There was a restaurant and a landing area where all the hikers and bike riders were resting from their adventures.  The views were spectacular.

Here we are on the top of he mountain looking down on Cortina. Gorgeous scenery. We went from the beach (sea level) to peaks of 10,000 ft. within 24 hours and the altitude did affect us. But here we are standing about 3.800 feet after climbing stairs and walking hills.