Lake Como, Italy

Of all the unlikely places that working in the oil and gas industry is likely to take you, this has got to be right up there. This part of northern Italy is famous for tourism, and not just any tourism. Within 30 minutes of the lake lie a number of high-end Swiss ski resorts. Lugano, in Switzerland is just down the road from here. Or up the road I guess. I was here on a visit to one of the leading suppliers of forgings for the pipeline industry. Can you believe that? Everyone thinks I'm lying. But it is the truth. Lake Como is the generic name for the region, which is an hour north of Milan, into the Italian alps, and is checkered with small towns or rather villages surrounding the lake. Colico, dervio, and Gera lario are some of these towns. On the souhside of the lake is a highly advanced forging industry, with serious automation and competitive with the best that the Chinese can throw. It is a case- study in itself of how northern Italy remains internationally competitive in the very basic manufacturing industry. Germany's success in manufacturing even in the wake of low cost nations is well documented. But in the case of Germany, it is a case of high-end, highly advanced manufacturing with serious technical sophistication. In other words, they are dealing with rocket science. Contrast that with Northern Italy, which is basically a region specializing in widget making (I exaggerate a bit but you get the point).

And that's not all that is remarkable. Directly across the lake, on the northern shore, is a more idyllic non-industrial land, infested with tourists and the odd Hollywood film star (George Clooney) who happens to live there. Never bumped into him, but he did a recent movie , "The American", that is filmed completely in this region.


Italian food is always interesting, but on this occasion, the food didn't suit me, mainly because I tried a local fish from the lake called "lavarello". They just pan fried it with no spice, and it was way too fishy for me..ended throwing up, not in the restaurant, but later on the room as the fishyness came coming back up my oesophagus and into my tongue repeatedly until I could take no more of it. Wonder if anyone knows that feeling.