Day 6 - Cortina , jewel of the Dolomites

Easygoing Morning

The morning of day six was planned to be easygoing. We could have enjoyed just a little more of Verona but since we felt we utilized her to the fullest we decided to pamper ourselves in the hotel room till 9-10 am.

Arrival from Verona to Cortina

The Dolomites are Italy's part of the Alps. The area can be found near Italy's northern borders. Cortina de'Ampezzo is considered as "The Jewel of the Dolomites' Crown" and is famous of the winter Olympics once held there.
In general the day was a bit wasted over transport and Dafna got a little impatient.
The way to Cortina was complex and I'm pretty certain it can be be accomplished faster since the way back took considerably less time. The best ways to know for certain the best route are to ask the hotel's staff or using the train tickets auto machine that can advise of good routes. The advised routes can be composed with train or buses and you can buy all the tickets beforehand.
Nevertheless, I will present my route:

1. Verona - Venice - Take a train from Verona to Venice (on the Milan-Venice axis)

2. Venice - Calalzo - Take another train which goes north to the village Calalzo di Cadore which lies on the Dolomites entrance. In the second half of the way you'll start to encounter the extravagance of the Dolomites.

3. Calalzo - Cortina - Arriving Calalzom you can purchase a bus ticket to Cortina in the information desk (unless you already bought it in the auto machine). The way to Cortina is twisting but you'll start to forget the train's scenery since the bus view is even more amazing.

Don't bother, It's just the scenery from the train.

First evening in Cortina

We arrived a little later than excepted - somewhat toward evening. The first thing you'll notice is the cold - this is the time to put some warm clothes on yourself. Many of Cortina's hotel can be found in it's center. Unfortunately when I booked my hotel most of them were occupied and others where just too pricy. So we had to be content with a hotel on some hill's ascent which wasn't a walking distance.
We managed to catch one of the last busses and reached Hotel Pocol.
A middle aged woman, warm and hearty received us in the most homely manner. The "hotel" was very small, no more than 6 or 8 rooms. The rooms as the building were built out of wood and the windows overlooked the valley which is Cortina city. Also the indoor temperature was just about right.
The late hour prevented us doing something real interesting, so we had a little conversation with hotel owner. We asked her of some good "day walk" trips (Since I wasn't that confident with the trips I checked on the net) and of good restaurants nearby. The hotel owner was very welcoming and advised us of recommended trips along with lengthy explanations (Looking back the trips she suggested were superb). As for the food, she suggest few places and tried to make some calls for reservations.
Ultimately we ate in a nearby hotel where we ate our first Italian high class food.
Afterwards we retired to bed - the night was young and we needed all the sleep for the next "early" morning.

Day Summary

The easygoing morning was refreshing but looking back I think I would rather getting earlier to Cortina.
The evening was an amazing change in light of the scenery and the mountains'' air.