The day after Christmas we packed up our rental car and headed north to the mountains. We hadn't driven a car since we dropped off our rental in New York on September 1 so it all felt a little strange. Our destination was Valsavarenche, part of the Gran Paradiso National Park in Valle d'Aosta. Luca's family has a holiday home there in the tiny (and utterly charming) village of Tignet. Our drive time was supposed to be about 4.5 hours - getting us there well before dark. About an hour out of Bologna we started to see the brake lights and then suddenly every lane had come to a stop. We waited. And waited. Soon everyone had turned off their engines and before long people were out of their cars standing in groups on the freeway - talking, eating, walking their dogs, etc. It was quite a sight to see.
I wondered how it was going to work with some people seemingly quite far from their car. I was very impressed that when it appeared we would start moving, people were quickly back in their cars. In the end we sat for 2 hours. When I was able to find news about it there had been a significant accident across all lanes, luckily with no fatalities. On we went.
We arrived just after dark - we had just enough remaining daylight to help with all the winding roads as we headed up the mountain. Luca met us on the road and we followed him to the agriturismo where we would be staying the next three nights. The name of the place is Lo Mayen and it could not have been cuter. The owner was so sweet and the breakfast every day was great - the stand out being the most incredible fontina cheese ever, made from the milk of their happy cows. The view from our room:
We met the whole family that night - Luca's parents, his brother and sister-in-law, and his nephew. There had clearly been a lot of cooking going on (which happens when Luca is around) and it was all amazing. Savory cannoli that were addictive, then slow cooked short ribs over polenta that had been grown and harvested by Luca's brother. Everything was delicious and it was so nice to meet everyone. We all made it through in a mix of Italian, English and hand gestures!