Today we start a little later and actually find a supermarket branch that is open today (usually, all stores are closed on Sundays). We stock up on breakfast to eat in Ascona by the lake. We love this charming little town with its Mediterranean architecture, narrow streets and beautiful harbour promenade. We like it much better here than in Locarno and Bellinzona.

And the town is car-free. Although: there’s a car show going on right now! The Ascona Classic Car Award showcases a colourful mix of older, old and very old vehicles. They look really beautiful here on the shores of Lake Maggiore. Funnily enough, most of them have travelled here from German-speaking Switzerland, including the owner of a Ferrari 512BB from the canton of Bern, with whom I chat briefly. He assures me that it is a coincidence that he also owns the matching number plate 512. I also like the Corvette C2, the Porsches and the Lancia Delta HF Integrale in the ‘Martini Racing’ colours, which is just arriving. Oh, it’s hard to concentrate on my breakfast!

After strolling around the town a bit and visiting an art gallery, we set off for the Verzasca Valley.

The first stop is the huge dam, which also appeared in James Bond’s Goldeneye. Here, we watch with a queasy feeling as bungee jumpers leap into the depths on elastic ropes, just like James Bond did. It’s just so far down. Maybe we’ll do that another time. 😉

Now we continue on to the Ponte dei Salti. I visited this stone bridge with its two curved arches as a child, and it is just as beautiful as I remembered it. No wonder there are so many tourists here. The granite rocks, smoothed by the water, and the clear water are beautiful to look at. Christine and I climb over the rocks, while Gabi enjoys the hustle and bustle from the footpath.

Now we’re not heading back, but further into the valley. Gabi knows of a beautiful little village with stone houses that we want to see. And Sonogno really is gorgeous. We stroll through the narrow streets and buy some bread that a local woman has just baked in the communal oven. In a shop further down, we add a nice piece of cheese. Soon we are sitting in the village square, improvising a light lunch of cheese and bread. By the end, we have eaten almost everything and are happily on our way back to the hotel.

Oh, we make three stops on the way back: the first at the Tesla Supercharger on Monte Ceneri to recharge. We make a second stop at the ‘Grand Tour’ photo spot, at Piazza Ticino, a remote meadow next to an industrial plant, where people rarely stray. The installation we see through the sign looks like a large sundial with railway sleepers laid out in a star shape. And the third stop is at a car wash to clean LucY for tomorrow’s photo shoot. And it works so well – the jet wash has higher water pressure than in German-speaking Switzerland – that we are stopped at the hotel by two customs officers in an unmarked vehicle. They want to make sure that we didn’t just have the car wrapped in Italy and then drove back to Switzerland without paying customs duty. No, we haven’t, but LucY says thank you for the nice compliment.

We have dinner right across from the hotel: Gabi has found a good restaurant here. She orders a Merlot risotto with luganighetta, a Ticino pork sausage. Christine is looking forward to a pizza Margherita, and I definitely want to order something regional: ossobuco with saffron risotto. Everything is really great and a wonderful end to our time in Ticino.