Bergamo

When the stresses of city life start getting you down, it's time to follow the example of the Milanese and head out of town during the weekend. Of course, President's Day wasn't part of the Italian weekend but we were lucky enough to celebrate it in the picturesque medieval town of Bergamo. Those living in Europe might recognize the name as being the city that RyanAir calls "Milan" when advertising their low-cost flights within Europe. While we've flown in and out from here (and will next weekend!) we've never actually paused to look around.


Bergamo is neatly divided into two parts, Bergamo alta and Bergamo bassa. The alta or 'high' part is the old medieval fortress built high upon a hilltop while the bassa or 'low' part is the more modern city, home to the train station, airport, and many commercial and residential areas. A twenty minute walk from the train station brings you to the funicular that will take you up the hill. Just an hour by train from the hustle and bustle of Milano, the Citta Alta is compact and quaint. It only takes 15 minutes to walk through the heart of the Citta Alta but along the city's old defensive walls, you can see the lion of St. Mark, indicating that they were actually built by the Venetians (the Lion of St. Mark is their symbol) in the sixteenth century. However, other historical sights indicate that the building of the city came even earlier.


The piazza Duomo tends to be a central figure in most Italian cities as the cities themselves were built around the local church. Bergamo is no exception, however, the duomo is not as impressive a figure as the neighboring church in the piazza, Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore. Construction began in 1157 (the same site had been home to another church since the 8th century) on the Romanesque and, with the exception of the dramatic entrances, the exterior architecture is nothing special (faded 16th century frescoes have been ignored for years - see above). However, the interior is spectacular and decorated with gilding, stucco, and vivid tapestries and frescoes.


We eventually stopped for lunch at an osteria near the Piazza Mascheroni on the far side of town. We were looking forward to sampling some of the local Bergamasco cuisine and splurged a bit, calling it our Valentine's Day treat. Mark had a lightly fried sole with three preparations of artichoke as a starter, followed by roasted rabbit with polenta. I had a tartine of caramelized onion with pancetta (bacon) to start and then the local speciality of casoncelli, a ravioli stuffed with meat and served in a light butter and pancetta sauce. Splitting a half bottle of a Barbera d'Alba, we left happily to continue sightseeing.


The Piazza Vecchia is the main square that breaks up the busy (yes, even on a Monday) via Gombito. This spacious square is home to exhibition spaces, the municipal library (in a gorgeous neo-classical building, of course), and the Torre Civica which you can climb up for a view of the town (we didn't).


After spending more time wandering the winding streets of the Citta Alta, we deciding to make our way back to the funicular. On the way, we noticed a side street pointing us to another sight mentioned by our guidebook (Time Out Milan, in case you were wondering - I love the Time Out city guides). La Rocca is a castle on the hill of Sant'Eufemia that originally was begun by a vicar who served John of Bohemia (King of Bohemia) and that was later fortified and completed by the Venetians. The road that takes you to the castle gates is the same road used by ancient Romans. The castle/fortress now houses a museum, gardens, and some of the most beautiful views of the Citta Bassa and the foothill of the Alps.


Before actually boarding the funicular and heading back to our train, we made sure to pick up one last Bergamasco speciality, polenta e osei. while this literally translates to "polenta and little birds", please be aware that it is actually a delicious cake made of neither polenta nor little birds. The sponge called rolled in fondant and topped with a little chocolate bird is actually a tribute to a medieval dish that, well, really was polenta with a little bird on top. It was our little piece of Bergamo to take back to the big city.