Hotel Cavallino d'Oro-Castelrotto

Up in the mountains near Germany lies a little town left behind by the Austrians. Castelrotto is technically in Italy but everything about it says Germany. The architecture, the language on the signs, even the man standing in the court yard speaking on his cell phone. If you were blindfolded from Varenna to this village, you would think you had left Italy for another country.
The interior design in this hotel screams old-world Germany. I have never been to either old-world Germany or regular up-to-date Germany but I'm pretty certain this is what it would look like. And, honestly, this hotel makes the last one we stayed in (supposedly a 5 star hotel) look slightly better than a Best Western. This hotel has all the warmth and luxury you would expect from a haus in the alps.
We left Varenna this morning to a beautiful sunrise. Compared to the wind and rain storm we had yesterday, today looked like heaven. The rainstorm in the lower altitudes, mixed with cold temperatures, created the perfect recipe for the first snow fall up here in the mountains.
If it weren't for the blisters on the backs of both of my ankles caused by the friction from my wet shoes rubbing on my heels, I would look forward to the hike we are taking tomorrow as a group. Right now, I don't even want to put my shoes back on. Sandals in the snow, anyone?