Ivrea, Fondo and wild raspberries

Some placenames just stick in your brain for whatever reason, and then they are a little more salient and end up sticking out on the map too. Ivrea, there used to be a famous Interaction design school there (Interaction Design Institute Ivrea (IDII), a hundred years ago when I was looking for universities. Arduino was first conceived there and it had a general air of (short-lived) creativity. I ended up on a different path and location back then, but now somehow it is on our way, an easy stopover before the mountains. I convinced Yana that it is worth a walk, and it probably did, on a less sun-blazing day.

We stroll for a little while, admiring the kayak facilities on a separate section of the river. It seems to be the cool-kid thing to do if you live here, in the summer. In winter there are snowsports. We continue northbound, passing a lake with paid parking, that is not my definition of wilderness. The road ends in a little village named Fondo. A handful of stone houses, a crystal river, and an arched bridge. To go further you have to employ your feet.

A slender figure emerges from one of the buildings. He is holding a (Τσαπα) and wears a cool hat. I asked if I could grab a photo of him in his potato field, and he paused for a moment. His name is Guido, and his hat is a Maroccinese or bought in Morrocco if I understood correctly. A little further we discover a waterfall, which most visitors have chosen as their resting / sunbathing spot. We attempt to hike a little more until the baking sun drives us back to the river. But not before we grab some tasty mountain raspberries for consolidation.