| Residents of the Alto Adige region of Italy will tell you | | | | a quaint Catholic chapel in 1990 used for services on |
| that you cannot claim to be true lovers of the | | | | Saturday night. Beyond it, was a view of the terrace, |
| mountains if you have not seen the Dolomites. For | | | | with its white umbrellas shading wrought iron tables |
| while every mountain landscape is beautiful in its own | | | | and chairs with fluffy cushions. And beyond it further |
| way, the Dolomites are like the precious stones of an | | | | still is a spectacular view of the Alps, Val D'Ultimo and |
| old family ring -- they have something extra. Perhaps | | | | the Dolomites. Incredibly romantic and perfect for |
| its their position in the heart of Europe, or it may be the | | | | couples, the castle is also surprisingly "kid-friendly." Our |
| pink hues of their sunsets caused by the fact that they | | | | children loved playing chess in the dining room, right |
| were once coral formations that rose up from the | | | | next to the Grand Piano and on Sunday had the |
| seabed 25 million years ago. Maybe it is the host of | | | | opportunity to play tennis, ping pong, and billiards, before |
| stories and history they have played witness to, | | | | going on a hike on the Castle's property. |
| invasions and exodus, as the portal to and from | | | | The rest of Castello Schloss Labers' 35 guest rooms |
| Austria. The colors of the Dolomites make it akin to an | | | | and halls also retained a medieval air. There were |
| enchanted garden: the fresh, verdant meadows | | | | vaulted ceilings, heavy exposed beams and rooms |
| framed by the darker greens of the woods, the pink | | | | trimmed in pine and chestnut. The corridor floors |
| hue of the mountains against the white of the glaciers | | | | creaked, and under the red carpet the wide staircase |
| at their peaks and the sky that resembles a cut | | | | was of granite. Dinner that night was elegant. A |
| canvas with the sharp outline of the peaks against | | | | princely atmosphere with vaulted mahogany ceilings |
| blue sky and white cotton-candy clouds. | | | | that looked like an inverted Scandinavian ship, revealing |
| Merano is a geographic anomaly. Predominantly | | | | the Stapf-Neubert family's Danish roots and taste in |
| German-speaking, it seems to belong to neighboring | | | | ornamentation. We began with Lasagnette mit |
| Austria, but is 70 miles inside Italy, a consequence of | | | | weissem spargel, Prager Schinken, or rather in Italian, |
| the redrawing of borders after World War I. Many | | | | Lasagnette con asparaghi bianchi, prosciutto di Praga, |
| street and shop signs are bilingual, but to Germans and | | | | or if you prefer the English spelling, Lasagna with white |
| Austrians, Merano is still Meran. The architecture of the | | | | asparagus and ham from Prague. We continued with |
| region is decidedly Tyrolean, with wrought-iron | | | | Scampi with Curry and Pineapple, with roasted |
| balconies making way for classic wooden carved | | | | potatoes and cauliflower and finished with lemon |
| ones characteristic of the Austrian and Swiss alps, a | | | | sorbet. Our choices included other tasteful blends of |
| change in shape of church bell-towers that is almost | | | | Italian and Tyrolean cuisine, befitting the region. Dinner |
| Byzantine, and food that leans towards Italy's northern | | | | was accompanied by the Castle's own label wine, |
| neighbors rather than the traditional Italian dishes. | | | | Schiava di Merano, a product of their own vineyards |
| Bisected by the Passirio River, which pours into the | | | | that surround the property and are cultivated by the |
| Adige, the city of 32,000 residents combines | | | | niece of owners Joerg and Beatrice Stapf. |
| red-roofed arcaded buildings, historic churches and | | | | Indeed, one of the notable advantages of this region is |
| flower-embroidered parks. Dominating the riverfront | | | | the plethora of fine wines. We sampled some of them |
| promenade is the Kurbad built in 1914, which will open in | | | | at the Enoteca Claudia in the Piazza del Duomo: a |
| September 2005, offering a full array of sulfur and | | | | delicate Chardonnay 2003, St. Michael-Eppan, a more |
| radon baths, mudpacks, saunas and bathing pools. | | | | robust Sudtirol-Alto Adige Eisacktaler Sylvaner 2004, |
| Merano, which traces its history as a settlement some | | | | and an equally tasty wine of the same grape by Muller |
| 2,000 years before Christ, is tucked into the | | | | Thurgau 2001. Then on to red wines, a Sudtirol St. |
| intersection of four mountain valleys spilling down from | | | | Magdalener Classico 2004 and a Sudtiroler Lagrein |
| lower Alpine ranges. Its protected location, about 1,000 | | | | Dunkel Grieser Reserve that was superb. |
| feet above sea level and shielded from the north, east | | | | Our second dinner in Merano, a significant contrast |
| and west, has given Merano a climate mild enough to | | | | from the first, was enjoyed at Kallmunz Restaurant |
| nurture vineyards as well as palm trees, oleander and | | | | right in the center of town at Piazza Rena. It is a |
| fruit trees that blossom against a backdrop of snowy | | | | combination of Italian and Japanese cuisine, completely |
| peaks. | | | | uncharacteristic of the region, but surprisingly highly |
| Merano has been famous as far back as the1500s for | | | | acclaimed by locals. Chief Luigi Ottaiano has teamed |
| its "milk cures" in the spring and "grape cures" in the fall | | | | with three Japanese collaborators to produce a menu |
| for digestive disorders. These recuperative remedies | | | | which combines the freshest of Italian ingredients with |
| kept a constant flow of tourism until the region, | | | | a decidedly Japanese flavor, and an elegant |
| especially during the 1800s when "Sisi," beloved | | | | presentation in a modern, minimalist environment. We |
| empress of Austria, became enamored with these | | | | enjoyed Patè di asparagi con salsa Alicante e pan |
| cures. Subsequently, Merano was ravaged by World | | | | brioche agli asparagi , Taglierini di pane al sugo di |
| War I and II and the tourism trade did not return until | | | | quaglie e asparagi, Ravioli di piselli con ragù di |
| sometime in the 1960s. For me, the magic of Merano is | | | | seppie, Petto di faraona farcito alle erbe con lattuga |
| the beauty of its historic piazza's and pedestrian areas, | | | | romana brasata, and Boulangère di rombo alle |
| including its café-lined river on one side and lush | | | | erbe aromatiche con capperi e cipollotti. Our dinner |
| park on the other. We enjoyed a wonderful lunch with | | | | was accompanied by a white wine, a Sauvignon Graf |
| a complicated ice-cream dessert that was almost too | | | | Von Meran, directly from the vineyards of Merano and |
| beautiful to eat, while listening to the sound of the river | | | | it was splendid. |
| and gazing at the 360-degree view of the mountains. | | | | A more traditional alternative, also acclaimed by locals, |
| Later attempted to shed a few well-earned calories | | | | but which we did not have opportunity to try, would be |
| by walking on the opposite side in the public park. | | | | Leiter AmWaal in the neighboring town of Plars |
| Among the many beautiful vacation accommodations | | | | Algund. A typical Tyrolean menu enjoyed in a historic |
| is the beautiful Castello Schloss Labers situated on a | | | | dining room. |
| hill looking down over the vineyards and up at the Alps. | | | | After you've relaxed in a local spa, finished with the |
| For a long time, the history of Schloss Labers | | | | pool at Castello Schloss Labers, and you're ready for |
| remained shrouded in mystery. A castle built in the 11th | | | | some adventure, get in the car and drive from Merano |
| century, it has been owned by the Stapf-Neubert | | | | to Bolzano. There, by following signs to Canazei, then |
| family since 1885. During World War II, however, it was | | | | Arabba and ultimately Cortina D'Ampezzo, you will |
| used by an SS Task Force to launder counterfeit | | | | surround yourself with some of the most beautiful |
| British Pounds. "Operation Bernhard," as it was called, | | | | scenery in the world. Around every hair-pin turn, and |
| was a scheme to enrich the Third Reich and | | | | there are many, another spectacular scene awaits. |
| undermine the British economy by a massive | | | | We shot no less than ten roles of film, and then only |
| counterfeiting of the Pound Sterling and ultimately | | | | by showing incredible restraint. In May the foliage was |
| exchanging fake banknotes for real ones. At that time, | | | | literally exploding, green fields of grass, consumed by |
| the owners of the castle, the Stapf-Neubert family, | | | | thousands of wild-flowers -- yellows, purples and |
| were forced out. They took refuge with neighbors for | | | | whites. Alpine chalet's hanging precariously cliff-side as |
| the duration of the operation and were not permitted | | | | if they belonged more to the sky, than the earth; |
| access to the castle. Then, as suddenly as they | | | | glacier-topped mountains in the background, |
| arrived, the SS Task Force disappeared in 1945. | | | | pasture-land and vineyards in the foreground. Then, |
| Apparently, Colonel Friedrich Schwend, the mastermind, | | | | just past Arabba and onto Cortina, the pink-tinted |
| was taken into custody by American | | | | Dolomites, still tinged with snow, stark and craggy |
| counterintelligence and avoided prosecution by | | | | cutting the blue sky. Locals will tell you that the drive is |
| becoming an Allied informant. After one year in this | | | | 2 ½ hours. Please count on 5. It's a full day |
| role, he and his wife slipped out of Europe on false | | | | experience. Come armed with a picnic lunch. When |
| passports and settled in Lima, Peru, where he | | | | you arrive in Cortina D'Ampezzo, have a gelato and |
| ultimately lived out his life in the open. | | | | look around at the shops. Try to show restraint as the |
| When the Stapf-Neubert family crept back in after the | | | | prices are about as high as the mountain chain. Then |
| Nazi exodus, they knew not what they would find. It | | | | make your way back to Merano by the quick northerly |
| was not surprising that on further investigation it | | | | route that is mostly two lane "highway." You'll get back |
| seemed that the Germans had managed to take just | | | | just in time for a shower and dinner. |
| about everything. In the following years, the family | | | | Should you be lucky enough to have an extra day, a |
| engaged workers to dig through some of the | | | | great educational experience for the kids involves |
| basement walls of the castle, wondering if they might | | | | visiting the "old dude," as we affectionately nicknamed |
| have hidden any of the counterfeit British pounds, or | | | | him. The old dude, better known as the "Ice Man," is a |
| anything else that might shed light on this intriguing | | | | 5,300-year-old mummy found in 1991 by German hikers |
| piece of history. Ultimately, all that they were able to | | | | on their honeymoon. They discovered him sticking out |
| find were two cards from a deck of cards, | | | | of a melting glacier high in the Tirol mountains. Scientists |
| determined by archeologists to have been used | | | | have yet to determine whether he was of Alpine origin |
| recreationally by German troops. | | | | or merely trying to cross the Alps. His equipment and |
| The castle has been a hotel since 1885, surrounded by | | | | one of his last meals seem to have come from |
| vineyards, and it was there that we ventured to enjoy | | | | lower-altitude valleys, nearer Verona. New forensic |
| a weekend in the Dolomiti (Dolomites). The stout front | | | | analysis in 2001 demonstrated that he was apparently |
| door opens to a large entrance hall with pikes and | | | | shot in the shoulder with an arrow shortly before he |
| muskets on the wall and archways leading to a stone | | | | died. Was he ambushed? Was it a hunting accident? |
| staircase with an iron balustrade. The dining-room is | | | | War? The figure was accompanied by a flint dagger, |
| graced by a grand piano and classical music was | | | | a copper ax, a quiver with flint-tipped arrows, shoes, |
| wafting through the halls, along with the savory smells | | | | some remnants of his clothing and a bear-skin hat. It is |
| of dinner as we entered. Our room was "king-sized", | | | | a fascinating exhibit for the whole family, but children in |
| spacious enough to swallow up the large wooden | | | | particular, will be in awe of this magnificent find. |
| beds, tables and armoire that might once have served | | | | As family destinations go, Merano is clearly one of our |
| knights and damsels, contrasted with a modern bath. | | | | favorites. There is something for every member of the |
| The view was breath-taking. We looked out over the | | | | family, regardless of energy level or mood. When you |
| chapel, which was originally utilized as a chapel, then | | | | you're surrounded by the Dolomite mountains, all other |
| converted into a pool-room in 1890 and back again into | | | | pleasures are secondary. |