Dolomites, Italy

If you need to slow down, the Dolomites is where to go!

The Dolomites (Dolomiti) are the Alps located in Northern Italy, near Austria. The only way really to get around is to rent a car. The area is beautiful and is great ski country...of course we were there in the summer, which meant some great hiking. One quirky thing about this area of Italy is that it has heavy influence from Austria. Menus were often in German, and I, unlike my mom, do not understand any German. Italian, I can fake, but German, nope. The first night we arrived in Folgarida, the only thing I recognized on the menu was wienerschnitzel, so I ordered that and waited for my hot dog. Little did I know, that a breaded veal cutlet was what came on my plate...with fries.

• We really got to experience the life and culture in the Dolomites. It's not overrun with tourists in the summer, so it is not an open 24-7 area.
• Don't bother getting up too early...nothing will be open! Life revolves around food & rest in the summer!
• The town shuts down for meals and allows about three hours.
• This means, you have time to eat, hike, and take a nap before any shops open in the afternoon.

It is at least 20degrees cooler than Venice or Rome in the summer and cold at night. So, we enjoyed the great outdoors, the quiet, and we allowed ourselves to get bored. We may have even watched Disney's classic Bedknobs and Broomsticks in German (the only channel in English was CNN...and there is only so much of that we can take!). We keep our eyes peeled for open-air markets--our favorite place to shop in Europe! You can always make a deal and find the most unique stuff from locals.

• You can't be here without hiking. Wherever there are ski resorts, there are hiking trails. Look for signs, or pop into a resort and ask the concierge where the trail heads are. The trails are well-maintained and can easily be done in a pair of running shoes.

However, that doesn't mean you aren't going to get out of breath! And bring lots and lots of water--it gets warm fast, and there aren't drinking fountains on the road.

One of our favorite adventures was we had been hiking for about an hour when we heard this strange noise in the distance that sounded like hundreds of wind chimes. We hiked for another 30 minutes and the sound got louder, but there was no sign of where it was coming from!

I had convinced myself we were in the middle of the Blair Witch Project and there was some freaky witch that lived in the woods, like the witch in Hansel & Gretel. Ashley thought it was a village of gnomes that make ceramic gnomes. Finally, we reached the end of the trail and saw dozens of cows with bells around their necks! It was just cows!

• The Dolomites are full of little towns nestled in the mountains 5-10minutes away from the next small town. This is why you need a car--there is only so much time you can spend in one tiny town and we had a week in the Dolomites. We hopped in the car and just started driving down the road, stopping at little towns. There are all sorts of stands on the side of the road that sell different foods and crafts. Plus, you can pull over to the side and get pictures next to the most beautiful views! One of our favorite spots was a little town called Male. We frequented a little pizzeria restaurante in Male. The staff spoke little-to-no English; though, they did ask if we spoke German. It didn't matter, the food was soooooo good!

There is an open-air market that sells fresh cheese! We bought a hunk of Brie and ate it as we continued to shop through the town.

• Male was also home to a miniature golf park. After finding it, we opted not to golf. Madonna di Campiglio is another ski town that looks more Austrian or German than Italian. It is the bigger of the towns that we went to, but was mostly good for shopping. The food was cheaper and better in the smaller towns.