Italy has always been one of our favourite countries for going on vacations. We have been there twice already and have covered Venice, Rome, Vatican, Pisa etc. This time, we decided to visit the German-speaking part of Italy, called South Tyrol. We got accommodation in a farmhouse called Obermairhof. An old farmer couple and their sons manage the farmhouse and do everything independently. For example, they supply apples to the famous organic food chain "Bioland". They are located in a small village named Parcines, and everywhere you see around this farmhouse are just mountains, clouds, and skies.
We visited a few towns around called Meran and Bolzano. They are popular tourist destinations, and it was good to roam around the streets with no masks or fear of Corona after almost two and a half years. These towns are more expensive than Germany but less expensive than Switzerland.
We ate the tastiest Bruschetta, Pizza and Pasta in friendly little eateries. The weather supported us quite well, and it was hot on most days except on two evenings, when it poured in some places and caused floods.
We took a cable car from Parcines and went to Giggelberg on Sunday. That was a place in the valley, and one can take up many trekking routes from that point. We are not trekkers, which was a new thing for us. My sixty-eight years old mother in law was with us and also my ten years old son. We chose the easiest and shortest trek route of three and a half hours which had an ascent and descent of 850 metres.
We had the map of the mountain ranges and started following the map. We had to follow route no. 24 for some time, take route no. 25, change to 25B, and start the descent with route no. 2.
We started at about noon with no idea what was in store for us in the coming hours. We went up and down the hills on route 24. There were many people on that route. We met a couple doing the Meraner Hohenweg (which takes seven days to complete). Small kids, older people, and many groups of friends crossed us from the opposite direction or went ahead of us.
After walking on route 24 for some time, observing and absorbing nature, and clicking photos, we had to take route 25.
That was all where it began. The route was extremely narrow, and a valley was on the other side. Our speed reduced considerably as we had to concentrate hard on every step. We could slowly feel difficulty in climbing. There was gravel on the route, sometimes just grass and occasionally just wet mud due to recent rains. We took turns to accompany my mother-in-law. Sometimes I was behind her; most of the time, Atul was behind or with her. Tanay walked with us, sometimes taking care of his jeeya (grandmom) and lending me a helping hand. He was a free-spirited bird making most of the time on the route, chatting away to glory, without any fear of the challenging course ahead.
Route 25B was the hardest, and our legs slowly started giving way. The route was so narrow that we couldn't take steps with both legs simultaneously. There was absolutely no space to do it. The narrow trail reduced our speed further. The boys were doing quite well, but we girls were almost struggling. We had no idea how long this would take, and we were already walking for four hours, with a few water and nature breaks.
My mom is a Trekker. She regularly goes to the Himalayas once a year and walks for many days together. I wonder what keeps her going. That day, the only thought on my mind was to complete the trek without slipping and injuring myself. So I constantly chanted "Shree Ram Jai Ram Jai Jai Ram", which helped me focus and complete the trek though it took seven hours.
We are often unaware of our capabilities unless we are tested. And I think that trek, the nature and the decision to do it helped me reveal a different facet of my personality. I can also trek, though I could do it at a snail's pace! It was an ambitious journey, but the resolution to complete it was enormous.
There came the point when my mother-in-law went to a standstill and couldn't move ahead. Hundreds of thoughts flashed across her mind in that one minute. What will happen if I am unable to get out from here? Who will rescue me? It will be a lot of trouble for my kids to get me out of here. How will people reach me to save me, this and that? But she made a final attempt with her complete resolve and slowly moved out of that point. She narrated this to us later after completing the trek. We all were so engrossed in the path ahead, that the only thought on everyone's mind was to get out of the place safely and soundly.
We started the descent with route two, and then I realised that descending is much more complicated than the ascent, and the legs and the knees are strained to a greater extent than during the climb. After two hours of ascent, my mother-in-law and I could not lift our legs anymore. Then, it started to thunder, and some rain drops followed. I intensely prayed for rain to wait till we reached our final destination. It was getting darker, and the last cable car was supposed to leave at 7 pm from the point where we started in the afternoon. And indeed, the rain waited for us to ascend completely. At about 6:45 pm, we finally reached the endpoint, and Atul cheered us both for completing the trek.
We both were speechless, and our legs were sore. We had no idea how we walked so much. We didn't see a single person after taking up route 25. We were the only crazy ones who dared to walk that route so late in the afternoon with zero preparations or ideas of how the course would be.
After completing the trek, when I look back and think about it, it was one of the most challenging routes as it was also the very first one for us in the Italian Alps. Maybe next time, we will be better informed and prepared. One wrong step or slippage would have landed us all in trouble. But the Almighty, Shree Ram, was always with me, and he gave me strength and endurance and the courage to complete the arduous trek.
We hadn't eaten the whole day, and we went to a nice cosy restaurant and had warm soup and some Bruschetta for dinner. Our hearts were already filled with the adventure in nature, and our tummies were later filled with tasty food, and we called it a day.
