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The valleys and mountains north of Lake Garda lead into the area of the Brenner Pass, the lowest and easiest crossing of the Alps, and the only pass which stays open all winter.
There were medieval silver mines in these mountains, a boon to my fictional Monteverde.
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Weather changes quickly here, on one of the higher passes above the tree
line, where outlaws and smugglers would choose to cross, avoiding customs and other inconveniences. This
is late September, the first snowstorm of the winter moving in. By the next morning, this pass was deep in snow.
This would be the far northern boundary of Monteverde; beyond this lies the Tyrolian Alps, Innsbruck and the Holy Roman Empire.
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This journey through the real Alto Adige and imaginary Monteverde is courtesy of my parents,
Dean and Sarah, who invited me to join them for a week while they were bumming around Europe like a pair of college kids,
celebrating their 50th wedding anniversay. ;) My father speaks French, German and Italian with fluency (I'm so proud of him!)
which makes all the difference in a research trip to areas where none of the guidebooks are in English
(not to mention ordering dinner). And you shoulda seen my mother driving that narrow road through the
pouring rain with the cliffs and Lake Garda below and those Italian drivers trying to pass in
blind tunnels!
Thank you, it was a great and memorable trip
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"Pardners Through Thick and Thin!"
Happy 50th Anniversary
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