Como
| Como is a very popular destination in Italy. It is located by Lake Como, 200m above the sea level and surrounded by mountains. Though not as impressive as other Italian cities for arts and architecture, Como is a relaxing nice city and so are the other cities and villages around the lake. | |||||||||
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Lake Como was created by glaciers as they went forth and back the valley in several ice ages. It has a maximum depth of 410m, a maximum width of 4.2km and a surface of 146 sqkm. Lake Como is the third-largest lake in Italy, after Lake Garda and Lake Verbano. | ||||||||
| The physicist Alessandro Volta was born and educated in Como. The Tempio Voltiano was designed and built in 1927 to celebrate one hundred years of his death. The neoclassic building houses a museum dedicated to the inventor of the battery and displays a series of instruments constructed and used by him to run his experiments on gas and electricity, including the first "pila", built in 1799, a revolutionary means of converting chemical energy into electrical energy. | |||||||||
| The construction of the Cathedral of Como began in 1396 on the site of the church of S. Maria Maggiore, from which little remains (there is a beautiful marble altar). The works continued for almost four centuries and the structure we now see is a mixture of late gothic details over a romanic façade, a renaissance apse and an 18th century dome. Huge pillars divide the church in three naves. |
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| At various locations inside the church, cards describe the many artworks, styles and historical facts. They are available in three languages (Italian, English and German). Adjoining the cathedral, there is a building called Broletto, with a remarkable 15th-century façade of polychrome marbles. Broletto was erected in 1215 and later a part of it was destroyed to make room for the cathedral. It was once the town hall, then a theatre, and today it is an exhibitions center. I was especially attracted by a window with odd-shaped columns. |
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The Basilica di San Fedele is originally from the 12th century. Its interior is very dark - it's completely different from the opulent cathedral. It was rebuilt many times and its present façade and bell tower were totally reconstructed in 1900. Inside there are frescoes from the 14th and 15th centuries and a beautiful arcade with fine capitals. | ||||||||
| Brunate is a village on top of a hill, 500m above the lake. It can be reached in about six minutes with the funicular (departs every half hour) and from where we can enjoy a beautiful view of Como and the lake. |
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| The cable railway was opened in 1894 and since then became an attraction for tourists, as well as serving the locals. The 1084m railway has a maximum gradient of 55%. Also at Brunate one can visit the Faro Voltiano, a lighthouse erected in 1927 at San Maurizio. This octogonal building contains a spiral staircase of 143 steps, from which one has great open views of the lake. I think it is open on Sundays only. | |||||||||
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One thing visitors to Como can't miss is a boat trip at Lake Como. There are many options available, either in a regular boat (batello) or speed boat (rapido). There are also some special touristic trips. You can check schedules at Navigazione Laghi. Cernobbio, one of the first stops, has beautiful gardens. | ||||||||
| I took the boat to Bellagio, located at a tip of the promontory that separates lakes Como and Lecco. Bellagio is a nice relaxing village where you can enjoy a good meal overlooking the lake (fish is the local specialty). It has some nice villas, among which Villa Melzi is the most important. The villa itself, built in early 19th century, cannot be visited, but its beautiful gardens full of statues are open to the public. |
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| Many palaces, or villas, can be found in Como and around the lake. They were built in the 18th and 19th centuries by wealthy families who had decided to build their summer residences on the margins of the lake - a common trend in the romantic era. Many of these villas were preserved are interesting to be visited, not only for their architecture, but also for their marvellous gardens. | |||||||||
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Perhaps the most famous villa at Lake Como and attracting over 100,000 visitors a year, Villa Carlotta was built in 1690. Later the villa got its name from "Carlotta", a Prussian princess who received it as a dowry for her marriage in 1848. It is located at Tremezzo, but some boats also stop right at the villa. | ||||||||
| Villa Carlotta contains many works of art, as well as the original perfectly preserved neoclassical furniture, giving the sensation to be in a house still inhabited by its noble owners. The gardens are another attraction. At the first years of the 19th century, this 7-hectar park was transformed in an English romantic park with a variety of plants. There are rhododendrons and azaleas, a water-lily pond, cacti and ferns, palms, maples, cedars, giant bamboos, magnolias and camelias, and so much more. | |||||||||
| Another attraction in Como is the Museo Didattico della Seta (Silk Museum). This museum opened in 1990 to present the history of the silk industry in Como, covering all stages of silk production, from silkworm breeding to silk dying. Como is an important manufacture center for silk textiles and today about 80% of the European production comes from this region. | |||||||||
The Lake Como Guide - TravelPlan.it
Lake Como
Uffizio Turistico del Lago di Como
Comune di Bellagio
Copyright © Maria Adelaide Silva
No reproduction is allowed without the author's agreement