T
he Faun Satiro���s descendent, Vigilio, turned his unreciprocated object of desire, Stella, into a rock. Bad enough,
but to place that rock in Lake Garda, Italy, just off what would
become Locanda San Vigilio, a must-visit hotel with an outstanding restaurant in a beautiful location, is an unconscionable punishment.
An ancient Roman nabob built his vast villa at the tip of
Sirmione, a long, narrow finger-like peninsula on the southern coast of Lake Garda, probably after much consternation.
Across the lake, just in view to the north-east, was an equally if
not more magnificent location, now home to Vigilio.
Today, the ancient villa���s ruins fascinate tourists. Its erstwhile
competitor, by comparison, is a secluded small peninsula. It
comprises private Parco Baia delle Sirene (Mermaids Bay Park),
a splendid 16th century villa and garden, designed by the famous Venetian architect Michele Sanmicheli (1484-1559), ancient olive and lemon groves and, most importantly, Locanda
San Vigilio, one of the oldest hotels in Italy and one of the
most picturesque in the world.
HYLAND
