Untouched by the coastline or national borders, and instead boasting unspoiled landscapes and spectacular views, Umbria has always been one of Italy's most mysterious and off-the-beaten-track regions—quite unlike its famous neighbor, Tuscany. But Umbrian food is just as good, and the atmosphere will often feel even more authentic given its wide array of cultural stimuli, from its widely known Jazz Festival to the incredible art collections scattered across medieval palaces, castles, and fortresses that are bound to take you back to bygone times.
Bergamo and Brescia: an active trip to Italy’s joint capitals of culture
28.07.2023 - 15:35 / theguardian.com
Wearing a crimson and sunshine-yellow flower crown, the young man is surrounded by his family, before there is the pop of the vino frizzante and the royal blue cups are filled for a merry toast to celebrate his graduation.
The fading afternoon light dances on this scene taking place near the small central Fontana Contarini in Piazza Vecchia, in Città Alta in Bergamo, the medieval upper part of the city. With its 16th-century Venetian walls and flourishing restaurants under large stone archways, the area invites people to pour in from every direction.
I arrive in the square in a tuk-tuk as part of a tour with guide Elisabetta Campanini and we wander past the Campanone, the city’s clock tower, whose bell I’m told will chime 100 times at 10pm, a perennial reminder of the closure of the city gates during the Venetian domination. At the top, accessible by foot (230 steps) or more comfortably in the lift, there is a vista across the city and a bird’s-eye view of the handsome basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore below.
We make our way down and into the basilica – built almost nine centuries ago in gratitude to the Virgin Mary for warding off infections from a plague spreading across Europe. A work of unashamed opulence, large tapestries in deep greens and golds adorn the walls. They were woven by hand in craft workshops in Florence and further afield in Flanders, and everywhere you look there are frescoes and stuccos designed by the Italian Renaissance painter Lorenzo Lotto. But, for me, the basilica’s most curious features are the medieval paintings next to its portals. Hidden for centuries after being painted over, some have now been restored. The colours are flatter in these works but they are no less beguiling than their more recent counterparts.
We spend the afternoon strolling across the city as Elisabetta explains that Bergamo and its neighbour, Brescia, have always been somewhat overshadowed by Milan, capital of the northern region of Lombardy. But in just a few hours, watching the Bergamese go about their daily lives and later, during an afternoon in Brescia – known for its arts scene and Roman relics, including the Santa Giulia Museum, part of a complex that was granted world heritage status in 2011 – it is obvious both are teeming with fascinating architecture and good food, and offer ample access to nature. This year, the cities are pausing a 900-year-old feud (more recently fuelled by the rivalry of supporters of its football teams, Brescia Calcio and Bergamo’s Atalanta BC) to become Italy’s first joint capitals of culture.
Both cities were badly affected by the pandemic: they were at the heart of the first wave of coronavirus in Europe, with ambulance sirens pealing out across the region day and
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