I
Love Touring Italy - Bergamo and Lake Como by Levi Reiss
Bergamo
Featured Hotels / Lake
Como Featured Self-Catering
 If
you are hankering for a European vacation, why don't you consider the city
of Bergamo and Lake Como in the Lombardy region of northern Italy? Depending
on your particular interests, this beautiful area might be an ideal vacation
spot. You can savor classic Italian food, and wash it down with fine local
wine. It is hardly undiscovered, but that shouldn't stop you from going.
With a little effort you should be able to find some relatively untouched
spots. Be sure to read the companion articles in this series that present
Milan, small town Lombardy outside of its capital Milan, and the Lake Garda
district with its interesting political past.
We start our Lombardy tour
at Bergamo east of the capital Milan. Then we head northeast to the shores
of Lake Como and tour the lake in a counterclockwise direction exploring
Bellagio, Villa Melzi, and Como at the southern tip of the lake and then
head back up north stopping at the island of Isola Comacina, and then finishing
our tour at Tremezzo with its centerpiece Villa Carlotta. For those who
want to tour still more of this lovely region head west to Lake Maggiore
and Lake Orta. You won't be disappointed.
| Bergamo, population about
120,000, was founded by the Celts well over two thousand years ago. It
is the only city mentioned here that is not on or near a lake, but really
that shouldn't stop you from visiting. This medieval city, tucked behind
ancient walls, overlooks or perhaps we should say underlooks the Alps.
It is divided into two sectors connected by funiculars (cable cars); the
older Bergamo Alta (Upper Bergamo) and the modern Bergamo Bassa (Lower
Bergamo). Can you guess which Bergamo I prefer?
The large Romanesque Church
of Santa Maria Maggiore was started in the Twelfth Century but its construction
went on for centuries. The Torre Civica (Bell Tower) was completed near
the end of the Fifteenth Century. The church sits right on the Piazza Vecchia
(Old Square) in Bergamo Alta. Climb to the top for a great view of the
Old City.
Bergamo
was the birthplace and home of Gaetano Donizetti (1797-1848), composer
of some 75 operas including the famous Lucia di Lammermoor, 16 symphonies,
and a multitude of other musical works. He is buried in the Santa Maria
Maggiore Church. If you like opera visit the Museo Donizettiano (Donizetti
Museum.) |
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The Cathedral of San Vincenzo
and Battistero are both situated on Piazza Duomo (Cathedral Square), the
old heart of the medieval city and in all likelihood the heart of the Roman
city way back when. Their more beautiful neighbor is the Fifteenth Century
Renaissance Capella Colleoni (Colleoni Chapel).
Lake Como is a glacial lake
shaped like an upside Y. It is about 28 miles (54 kilometers) long and
at most 2 miles (3 kilometers) wide making it the third largest lake in
Italy. Lake Como is one of the deepest lakes in all Europe.
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Bellagio, population three
thousand, sits at the center of Lake Como's Y. It was a tourist center
even in the days of the Romans. The famous composers Liszt and Schubert
vacationed here, as did the writers Pliny the Elder (Classical Roman),
Longfellow, and Shelley. This town is so special that Las Vegas has honored
it with a hotel. I don't need to see both Bellagios to know which one I
prefer. Try to get here outside the high season of July and August.
Be sure to see the Villa
Serbelloni surrounded by acres and acres of gardens laid out in a multitude
of styles. It is now an international conference center for scholars and
artists.
Back in 1801-1803 Count Francesco
Melzi d'Eril was Vice-President of Napoleon's Italian Republic. Several
years later, perhaps to drown his sorrows over the Republic's brevity,
he built the Neo-Classical Villa Melzi in the south end of Bellagio right
on the lake. Its garden, the only part of the Villa open to the public,
is probably the oldest English garden on Lake Como. The garden includes
a Japanese pond with waterlilies surrounded by Japanese maples and cedars,
Egyptian sculptures, and Roman statues. |
Como, population about sixty
thousand, is situated at the very southern tip of Lake Como. Can you believe
it took Lombardy's capital city Milan almost a decade to defeat little
Como way back in the Twelfth Century? Not very long afterwards, Frederick
I, the Holy Roman Emperor, destroyed Milan and built several defensive
towers ringing Como. Only the Bardadello Tower still remains. Climb up
it and get a great view of the entire lake.
Like most Italian cities,
Como has a fine series of old churches to tour. Here are some of them:
The Duomo (Cathedral) a Fourteenth Century Renaissance-Gothic structure
with statues of two of the city's most famous residents, Pliny the Elder
and Pliny the Younger from Classical Roman times; San Fedele, an Eleventh
Century Romanesque church with a beautifully carved door; and Sant'Agostino,
Fourteenth Century Cistercian church with old frescoes and Baroque decorations.
Italy produces over 90% of
Europe's silk and most Italian silk is produced in the Como region. Italian
silk is a billion Euro (far exceeding a billion Dollar) industry. Find
out more at the Museo Didacttico della Seta (Silk Museum). You can shop
for fine silks at many nearby stores and warehouse outlets.
Isola Comacina (Comacina
Island) is the only island in Lake Como. Do you remember the wars between
Como and Milan? Well at that time the island residents sided with Milan
and there was hell to pay. In the words of the then Bishop "No longer shall
bells ring, no stone shall be put on stone, nobody shall be host, under
pain of unnatural death." At the start of World War I Isola Comacina was
given to the King of Belgium who donated it to Italy after the war. It
is now home to artists and scholars.
| Head north to the resort
town Tremezzo, population 1300. Its highlight is Villa Carlotta, built
during a fifty some year period starting towards the end of the Seventeenth
Century. When you see this villa you'll know why it took so long to construct.
The grounds are spectacular, for example they include over 150 varieties
of azelias and rhododendrons. Its art museum is dedicated to neoclassical
art. For a change of pace, visit the Museum of Agricultural Tools located
in an ancient greenhouse on the property. While you can't stay at the Villa
Carlotta, the Grand Hotel Tremezzo is definitely quite classy.
What about food? In this
part
of Lombardy the cuisine is divided into three main sectors. The lake cuisine
specializes in fish with some local favorites such as dried shad. The area
around Tremezzo is known for vegetables such as asparagus. The mountain
cuisine is based on polenta, a sort of corn bread often flavored with cheese
or cheese, butter, and garlic.
Other mountain specialties
include free-range chickens, kid, and game. The third category is valley
cuisine based on cattle and cheese, especially Taleggio and various goat
milk cheeses. |
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Let's suggest a sample menu,
one of many. Start with Fettuccine con Funghi (Fettuccine with Mushrooms.)
Then try Agnoni all Comasca (Lake Como Fried Fish with Anchovy Filets).
For dessert indulge yourself with Torte Paradiso con Mascarpone (Sponge
Cake with Mascarpone Cheese.) Be sure to increase your dining pleasure
by including local wines with your meal.
We conclude with a quick
look at Lombardy wine. Lombardy ranks 11th among the 20 Italian regions
for both acreage devoted to wine grapes and for total annual wine production.
The region produces about 62% red and rosé and 38% white wine, but
there is little rosé. There are 15 DOC wines. DOC stands for Denominazione
di Origine Controllata, which may be translated as Denomination of Controlled
Origin, presumably a high-quality wine. The G in DOCG stands for Garantita,
but there is in fact no guarantee that such wines are truly superior. Over
47% of Lombardy wine carries the DOC or DOCG designation. There are three
DOCG wines: the sparkling Franciacorta said to compete with French Champagne
and priced accordingly, the red Sforzato di Valtellina, and the red Valtellina
Superiore.
Interestingly enough no DOC
wines originate in the vicinity of Lake Como, Lake Orta, or Lake Maggiore.
However, Bergamo is home to two DOC wines, Valcalepio and Scanzo/Moscato
di Scanzo. The Valcalepio DOC is vinified in several styles. The dry red
and the dry white come from international grape varieties such as Merlot
and Chardonnay. The sweet white wine comes from a local grape and has recently
been classified at the Scanzo/Moscato di Scanzo DOC. I have not had the
pleasure of tasting either of these wines. I have had the disappointment
of tasting the sparkling Franciacorta DOCG wine made not far east of Bergamo.
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/ Bergamo Featured Hotels / Lake
Como Featured Self-Catering
About the Author - Levi Reiss
has authored alone or with a co-author ten books on computers and the Internet
but he would rather just drink fine Italian or other wine, accompanied
by the right foods. He knows about dieting but now eats and drinks what
he wants, in moderation. He teaches various computer classes in an Ontario
French-language community college. His new wine, diet, health, and nutrition
website http://www.wineinyourdiet.com
links to his other sites. |
