When our photo editor and resident photographer takes a Flying Longhorns trip, expectations are always high upon his return. For 10 days in April, Matt Wright-Steel accompanied 13 travelers starting in Zürich through the Upper and Lower Engadine Valley, across the Maloja Pass to the picturesque lake district of northern Italy. Wright-Steel invites Alcalde readers to live vicariously through his travels—and perhaps prepare for your own trip. —Eliza Pillsbury
Photographs and captions by Matt Wright-Steel
A classic mahogany and teak boat arrives at the shore of Bellagio, Italy.
A view from the palazzo of the House of Borromeo on Isola Bella (“the Beautiful Island”). Constructed in the 17th century, the palazzo was dedicated by Carlo III to his wife, Isabella d’Adda. From an exterior window, one can see over Lake Maggiore to Isola Pescatore and the village of Stressa.
The Italian national flag, also known as il Tricolori, whips into the winds of Lake Como.
A fontana dei putti—named for the angels—in the formal gardens of the Villa Taranto on the western shore of Lake Maggiore. The gardens were established in the 1930s by Scotsman Neil McEacharn, an avid botanist.
Maximalism on full display, 130 gilded frames dress the wall of the Galleria Berthier at the heart of the Palazzo Borromeo.
The iconic Teatro Massimo monument towers over the gardens of Isola Bella. Rare flora surround groupings of statues and fountains under the gaze and majesty of the unicorn, the herald of the Borromeo family.
Tourists capture Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” at the Santa Maria della Grazie in Milan, Italy.
A reflecting pond in the 19th-century English gardens on Isola Madre.
The Alps tower over this vista of the Villa Taranto from the Petalo Pavilion, the highest point of the botanical gardens.
The earliest mentions of a theater in the gardens of Isola Bella were in 1657, with this teatro delle marionette later commissioned for a visit from the Sardinian royal family in 1828. Designed by Alessandro Sanquirico, a famed set designer from La Scala opera house in Milan, the theater’s performances ceased in 1857 amid the Italian Wars of Independence.
The Ibex, a symbol of Switzerland, stands proudly in front of the 500-year-old Crusch Alva” (“White Cross”) Hotel in the Engadine village of Zuoz, Switzerland.
A view of Badrutt’s Palace (left), a five-star hotel popular among European aristocracy, fashion moguls, and the world’s jetsetters. In the summer of 1864, Caspar Badrutt made a wager with four British summer guests: They should return in winter and, if the village was not to their liking, then he would reimburse their travel costs. The guests agreed, and Badrutt invited them to stay as long as they wished.
Flying Longhorns Trinidad San Miguel, EdD ’96, Life Member (left), and Ruben Garza pose in the Zuoz city center.
The Bernina Express makes its way through the late spring snow en route from St. Moritz, Switzerland, to the Italian town of Tirano.
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