kneipp Bath Salts
The magic of winter in the Dolomites
Residents of the region of Alto Adige in Italy you say it is impossible to understand the majesty mountain true until you've seen the Dolomites. Because while all the mountain scenery is spectacular in its own way the Dolomites have something more. Perhaps your position in the heart of Europe, or it may be pink tones of the sunsets caused by the fact that once the training is coral has increased from 25 million seabed years. This may be the host of tales and stories that have been witnesses, invasions and the exodus, as the front door and Austria. The colors of the Dolomites, which is like an enchanted garden: the cool, green meadows framed by dark green forests, mountains rose on the white peaks and glaciers in the sky appears to cut the tissue around the sharp peaks on the sky blue and white clouds of cotton candy.
Merano, in the heart of the Dolomites, is a geographical anomaly. Mainly German language, which seems to belong to neighboring Austria, but is 70 miles inside the border of Italy, a consequence of the redefinition of borders after War Street I. Many signs are bilingual, but the Germans and Austrians, Merano is still Meran. Architecture is definitely Tyrol, with balconies wrought iron to make room for the classic wooden carved features of Austrian and Swiss Alps modified form of the church steeples that is almost Byzantine, and the food leans toward the northern Italian neighbors rather than traditional Italian dishes.
Divided Passirio the river that pours into the Adige, the city of 32,000 residents combines red-roofed buildings, arches, historic churches and parks embroidered flowers, Merano, is stuck in the intersection of four mountain valleys spilling the plaque reduction of the Alps. Its protected location, about 1000 meters above the sea and protected from the north, east and west, the climate is mild enough to feed the vines and palms, oleander and fruit trees that bloom against a backdrop of snowy mountains.
This village is famous Alps and in 1500 for its healing spring milk and grape cures in the fall for digestive disorders. These remedies recovery kept a constant flow of tourism in the region, particularly in the 1800s when Sisi, Empress Austria loved, fell in love with these healings. Subsequently, Merano was ravaged by the Second World War and the tourism sector has not back until sometime in the 1960s.
In summer, the tops of mountains are full of wild flowers and grazing animals. But winter here that catches my imagination. The snowcapped mountains and still are, but below the passegiata along the river is full of Mercatino Christmas and every street is full of Christmas decorations without lights so charming Italian impressive as Hans Christian Anderson Fairy Tale went. True to its Italian roots and Germanic, traders sell everything from colorful future sarcastic Befana Witch brings gentle satirical Italian children leave their shoes by the door on the eve of the Epiphany, weihnachtspyramide, Wooden Christmas decoration Germanic moves and turns with the natural warmth of candles thermo-dynamics. wine SIP buyers BRULE hot mulled wine charm mix, pretzels and eat enormous. Children ice skating on the air of a band of Tyrol, and the smell chestnuts roasted in hot air.
There are many hotels in this area, one for all tastes and pockets, but I mission to find one that had everything. I was looking for a charming atmosphere with modern facilities worldwide, training of staff of sophistication, but friendly and without claim, a restaurant of health, but the sumptuous cuisine, and perhaps even a little spa break Christmas shopping.
Talking to local people, I was surprised and pleased to see an improvement in the hotel description of my life. It is called Castel Rundegg hotel & Beauty Farm and is in fact a castle, a hotel, and if you think that the beauty center "connotes something old-fashioned, think again. The Chinese philosophy in which most treatments are based, of course, is of ancient origin, but the spa and treatment center itself is renewed the last and elegant rules.
At the bottom of the old castle brand new spa, it's like instantly transcend 16th century to today.
Many treatments, facials and massage are based on the use of bioenergy Yang acupressure to administrators combat against a multitude of ills. These are not hot and diffuse a weekend "relaxation" of treatment. They are real, honest to the quality of treatment curative leave you like they wanted a way to improve long-term anatomical expressed the pleasure of the scalp to toes. Above all, and it my favorite part, these treatments, the results beyond the treatment room and stay with you for days, weeks, or if you have the chance and open the duration of living.
A dream would Rundegg term "Fitness" The week includes full board seven days, six massages, a spa treatment, facial peel and a manicure and pedicure. Image starts each morning with aqua gym, followed by good health, but breakfast. Each meal is taken in the elegant dining room will be the height of haute cuisine, but carefully adapted to their needs. If you choose, you can a thorough medical evaluation and diet. But anyway, customers can make unlimited use of indoor pool, sauna and steam bath, Kneipp bath, Scottish shower, and yoga. The whole package is 2,100 euros per person per week. A month sounds good to me. Best of all, you'll be in the love hands of Peter and Adriana Castelforte and regardless of her age, she treated as her own child or a girl then placed in their hands.
The new features are Merano thermal baths and spa baths Merano. The Baths of Merano offers 25 swimming pools of processing baths and relaxation, the pool water cold for a sauna bath tub with its clouds of steam. He has led the water through the strength of the existing pool, swim with the buoyancy in salt water sea pool and enjoy swimming 240 meters, where you can start at home and just swim in the mountain landscape. There also two steam baths, a solarium, a hay bath, caldarium, a Finnish sauna outside the log cabin. If dives are not enough cold water to cool after a hot sauna, try snow room, where, literally, the snow from the roof, walls and floor full of snow, and you have the feeling of among the glaciers of South Tyrol, whatever the season.
Finally, a variety of restaurants to choose from, in addition to the Hotel Rundegg. For variety, I recommend at least one dinner at Sissi, the empress herself the name of the chef-owner Andrea Fenoglio surprise you the kitchen is modern in its presentation, but respectful of tradition in Tyrol, fried with a little imagination fun. My favorite dessert www name. quattrobanane.com, but do not try to look on the Internet is strictly for human consumption, not for your computer search engines. The literal translation, four bananas, Culinary translation is that you just have to try it for yourself.
More idyllic than this, you will need to create your own fairy tale.
About the Author
Denise Hummel is an American, who moved to Italy with her husband and children for a one year cross-cultural experience that has expanded to two. Denise Hummel directs a communications business focused on tourism called Imagine Communications.
