Bergamo

Bergamo - View from the upper city on one of the hills of Bergamo

I didn´t know what to pick after London and Scotland, but I thought that was time to write something on my hometown in Italy: Bergamo.

Bergamo is a small city in Lombardy, north of Milan, with more or less 115.000 inhabitants. In my opinion is in a very good position, because not so far away there is the biggest Italian biggest city (Milan, as I said) and many more, there are lakes (Garda, Maggiore, Como, Sarnico for example), and of course the mountains with loads of valleys and nice places to walk and eat well.

Cloudy Day

Bergamo is divided in two parts: the lower city, that is the modern city, and the upper city, the old medieval part. Bergamo was founded by the Celtics, but it became an important town with the Romans, thanks to its strategic position in the middle of the north of Italy. The upper city has 2 main streets that come from the Romans time, but after the town has developed thru the different dominations (Lombard duchies; Venetian Republic, from which the city took the symbol of the lion; Austrian Empire). In 1859 Bergamo entered the Kingdom of Italy, after Garbaldi freed it during the Second Italian War of Independence.

Main old square

The old city is my favorite part, because I like the medieval period, but also because it more silent and greener compared to the modern Bergamo. The upper city lays on a hill and it´s still surrounded by big defensive walls from the 17^th century. As tourist you can enjoy many historical houses, the medieval atmosphere, the main old square with a part of the university and behind which there are the three main churches: the cathedral of Bergamo (with frescoes of Tiepolo and the grave of Gaetano Donizzetti, of which you can also visit a museum), Santa Maria Major and Colleoni Chapel. There is also the Rocca, that is the old Castle, from which you can enjoy a fantastic view of the upper city, lower city, the mountains and the valley. There is also another church, San Michele al Pozzo Bianco, built in the 12^th century, where people can find paintings from Lorenzo Lotto(if you are interested in Lorenzo Lotto, I think you would like the Cuardis chapel in Trescore Balneario). I suggest to take a long walk along the defensive walls: it´s relaxing and you can enjoy many things that are not visible from a bus. With regard to the food, you can find so many places in the old city where you can enjoy the typical food from Bergamo (I suggest to try a special kind of ravioli called Scapinocc of Parre or the Casoncelli, or the Brasato with polenta) or good Italian food, also a simple pizza!

In Bergamo you can find a good art museum called Accademia Carrara, and a gallery of modern art called GAMEC. There is also a science museum, an historical museum on Bergamo, a Botanical Garden.

But I remember that it´s not so difficult to reach many beautiful places in Lombardy, because Bergamo lies in the centre of the region. I suggest Como, Lake Garda, Milan, Pavia, and I cannot pick where to go in the mountains, because there are so many places! In the evenings there is not so much to do, but you can enjoy a nice dinner and a walk in the centre of the lower city. Or you can drive to one of the lakes or up in the mountains. My city is not so big, but it deserves a visit!

Lower City and Upper City in the back (not the best weather for the view:P)

Links:

• Bergamo Tourism: some information on Bergamo, the weather, what can you do and see, and some other links.
• Accademia Carrara and GAMEC
• Botanical Garden (site only in Italian)
• Science Museum and Donizzetti´s museum
• For the hotels use Expedia and remember! Ryanair flies directly to Bergamo!

Scotland

It has been long time since I wrote something on this blog. Many new things happened in real life, and I had to re-organize my time. But I don’t want to leave this blog behind, so I picked my next place: Scotland!

Scotland Landscape

I went to Scotland in 2006. I drove from London to Edinburgh, and from there I visited 2 other places: St. Andrews and Stirling. I only spent 4 days there, but I’ll come back there in my life, that’s for sure. Scotland landscapes are amazing: this hills seem to touch the sky and the clouds that run so fast, the green fields full of sheep and cows, the tranquillity of the little city outside Edinburgh… wonderful! And Scottish people seemed to be funny and they welcomed you in a warm way! You can feel and see their pride for the old Scottish traditions, even if today tourism made things a bit more commercial.

Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Edinburgh is the capital of Scotland since 1437, and in 1995 UNESCO listed the Old Town and the New Town as a UNESCO world heritage site. I liked the old town because it has a medieval aspect, and it’s melancholic as London is, or even more than the English capital. You can enjoy the view of the city and the surroundings from Arthur’s Seat or many other places, because the terrain varies a lot: it’s all an up and down. My B&B was near the Arthur’s Seat, but I didn’t climb the hill, but from the bottom you could see people talking a walk. Now I regret not being there, because from the pictures I see on the net the view is amazing!

Arthur's Seat

In the city you can find many historical places to visit and museums, places where you can eat good food, places where you can buy real kilts (they are so beautiful) and a bagpipe, places where you can try or buy the Scotch Whiskey (there is also the museum near the castle, in the centre of the city), the zoo and the aquarium, nightclubs and many other things. If you want to visit the surrounds of Edinburgh, I think you will be able to find many many many interesting things to see. Personally I visited St. Andrews and Stirling.  I went to visit St. Andrew because some years ago a friend of mine went there, and from her description of the place I decided I would have gone there soon or later. Saint Andrews is a little city on the coast north of Edinburgh. There you can find the oldest Scottish University (University of St. Andrews), but it’s also known to be the “home of golf”. As a matter of fact there is a large golf camp near the sea and the shore, but I think there are many more. Saint Andrews is also the patron of Scotland, celebrated on the 30th of November.

St. Andrews

In this little city you can also visit the ruins of St. Andrews Cathedral, the castle, St. Rules Tower and walk around the place, that is really nice, relaxing and cold if you go in the winter! It’s one of that places in which you can seat somewhere and just enjoy to spend some time looking at the landscape. It looks like the time is slower compared to the big cities, and you can actually take some times for yourself and close the toughs about work and less funny things in a little closet.

The mirror

St. Andrews Cathedral

The other place I went to see it’s Stirling, of course because of William Wallace. Wallace was a Scottish patriot that was leading the resistance during the Wars of Scottish Independence, and he defeated the English army at Stirling; he has been hiding for years, but then he was found and handed in to Edward I of England, who had him executed for treason. In this city you can find a monument dedicated to him and his original sword (that is taller than me!), the Stirling castle, the Stirling Bridge where a famous battle has taken place and an amazing view of the zone.

Wallace

Stirling Castle

Stirling

Wallace Monument

Here you can find a list of useful links that will help you to plan a little trip to Scotland:

• Edinburgh: Edinburgh and Explore Edinburgh, if you want to see what kind of attractions there are, find an accommodation, etc.
• Edinburgh history: Wikipedia!
• St. Andrews history: Wikipedia again!
• Stirling history: the city and Wallace
• Museum of Scotch Whiskey: The Scotch Whiskey Experience
• If yo want to see Nessie: Loch ness