History

True story or legend... there once was a Dragon. 

His name was Benacus, and his home was at the summit of Monte Baldo.
He was fond of oak leaves and only flew over the shores of the lake at night,
when he was sure not to frighten the locals.
There was one year when winter came suddenly,
covering everything with its harsh, hard frost.

Hungry one morning,
Benacus was forced to push on to the slopes of the mountain.
Here, a group of fishermen, seeing him in his greatness,
and being frightened of him, attempted to imprison him.
Successfully, Benacus was chained on the Trimelone Island,
waiting for the wise man of the village to decide what to do with him.

Bortolo was the guardian of the island.
The young fisherman was therefore assigned to guard the Dragon.
In Benacus' eyes there was no trace of violence, and Bortolo soon realised this.
The two learned to trust each other. 
Every morning, Bortolo went to the foot of the mountain
to fetch oak leaves for Benacus.
Looking up at the stars, they dreamt together of the day when they
could fly free over the waters of the lake.

But the magic was quickly extinguished,
when the wise man of the village decreed the killing of the Dragon,
because he was considered a danger to the lake population.
So, the evening before the sad day,
Bortolo freed Benacus, ordering him to fly as far away as possible.

The Dragon had escaped, and it was all Bortolo's fault.
So the wise man decided to revoke his appointment as guardian of the island.
Bortolo returned to live on the shores of the Lake.
It is said, however, that Benacus never left the Mount,
and that he returned every night to visit his friend Bortolo.
Right here, where the Hotel Drago now stands.

...who knows, maybe on a late summer evening you might be lucky enough to see them.