“We’re almost there and nowhere near it… All that matters is we’re going”
The beautiful thing about summer is that we seem to have time – and that in endless amounts. Our day starts late, we have nowhere to be and nowhere to go. It signifies freedom, if even just a little while. Each day follows the way you create it, and we finally have the chance to do all the things we’ve been craving to do – like traveling and getting away.
The memories we create in summer root from adventures we’d never thought to take. We let ourselves go along with people that allow us to be our most carefree self. Part of that is traveling without a fixed destination and discovering the most beautiful places along the way.
All we knew was that we wanted to end up in Venice in Italy. So we got on the highway and drove in the direction of Bolzano, where we wanted to make a quick stop. Unfortunately, or more so fortunately, we missed the exit and kept driving down to south, to Lake Garda. Catching the sunset while taking a swim in the lake was definitely worth missing the exit..
We were lucky to get the last room in a hotel located at lakefront. The hotel was in Lazise, a fairly small town at Lake Garda.
After watching the last rays of sun disappear on the horizon, strolling through the old town made a beautiful day go to end and started into the next one at Hollywood, the most popular club in Bardolino, Lazise’s neighbor town.
We started driving early the next day, as we wanted to reach Venice. From Lazise, it only took us around four hours to get there. If you are planning on going there by car, expect to pay a daily fare of around 26 Euros in the parking garage and walk the rest of the day – Venetians only travel by boat 😉
To me, Venice had something magical. Walking the countless alleys of the island made it seem like being lost in a huge and seemingly never-ending labyrinth, where every turn reveals a new secret.
After wandering for quite a while, we finally reached Piazza San Marco – Venice’s most famous square where hundreds of tourists meet.
Quite frankly were we exhausted after 6 hours of walking through this beautiful city.. We made our way back to the car around the time the sun went down over Venice. We had parked our car on the roof of the garage, and this way we were able to experience the city from above one more time – while again watching the sun slowly fading on the skyline.
Fortunately, we were lucky many times on this trip, and so were we when booking our next hotel in Jesolo – a coastal town at the Italian Adria. We again got one of the last rooms available, and the hotel was, as we found once arrived, situated directly on the beach.
After spending two very relaxing days and a wonderful dinner at Merville on our last night, we made our long way back to Munich. Not without making a last stop, however. A stop we “found” as an exit on the highway. Milstätter See – a beautiful lake in the north of Austria. The view of the lake in between endless mountains was exceptionally impressive – too bad it was too cold to take a swim..
For having tried “road tripping” for the first time, I found that it was a greatly exciting experience – a time filled with constant surprises. The best part, though, you can do whatever you feel like, at any time! It gives you freedom to follow the urge to travel to exactly the place you want to travel to at this very moment. I’ve found that traveling without a fixed destination leads you to discover beautiful new places, maybe even new parts of yourself. Try it out, travel without harbor, but never without purpose. Because who knows where we’re going in life, anyways? All we know is what we’re made of, our worth and our aspiration, but after all, our journeys are what shape us. Most importantly, take a person you’d want to share these moments with and always enjoy the ride, no matter where you end up after having taken that wrong exit on the highway.
Keep traveling,
Joana
Joana Serein 