Paradiso is next to Lugano but because of urban sprawl, you will not notice that you have entered “paradise”.  What a name for a town !  We arrived by boat to take a funicolare (funicular railway) that goes up to Monte San Salvatore.  This is one of the four or five of funicular railways that take you all the way up to the top of mountains surrounding Lago di Lugano.  Despite the overcast weather, the almost-36o degree view is stunning.  Most eye-catching is the viaduct at Melide that traverses the lake to Bissone on the other side (below, from right to left), unofficially dividing the lake into a Northern and Southern side.  Also visible are Campione d’Italia, and the inland Swiss and Italian towns behind Lugano and Paradiso all the way up to the Alps.