Lake Como, Italy has all the ingredients to make for the perfect holiday.

On the whole italians are quite healthy (well, apart from the smoking!).  They eat lots of fruit, vegetables and fish and they drink plenty of water.  Although hardworking, their pace of living is quite relaxed and with the help of a good climate, they are often outdoors.

The Italians are very active  whether it be walking, hiking or cycling; which is an extremely popular sport along the lakeside.  Just take a trip to the lake at the weekend and you will see countless numbers of cyclists of all ages whizzing along the roads.

Many of the small villages and towns have tennis courts and at least one football pitch and volleyball seems to be the main sport taught in the local schools.  You will often see teenagers playing volleyball down by the lake in the summer.

In all the time that we have lived here, we have never seen a group of young people walking around drinking alcohol.  It is more often the case that you see them grouped around a vespa (moped) discussing the engine size etc!  Even when out at bars, of course they may have a drink or two, but they seem to know when to stop and will opt for a coffee instead.  They seem happy spending time socializing with their friends rather than being on a mission to get drunk!  Maybe this explains why we see so many people in their 80's still walking briskly along the streets with their shopping bags.