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Wednesday, May 14, 2008

little honeymoon adventures in Italy

it's little honeymoon Wednesday!
little insider tips for those choosing Italy as a honeymoon destination. Here's an "off the beaten path" day trip if your thinking of spending extended time in Milan............................Enjoy!

BERGAMO

Bergamo, is a little town in the Lombardy region, 45 minutes north of Milano. It's a great day trip if your travels bring you to Milano. The town has two centers, upper city, "Città alta", medieval walled city on a hilltop and the lower city, "Città bassa", serves as the modern city center of Bergamo, which are connected by a cable car and roads.

SITES
II Palazzzo della Ragion (città alta)
Piazza Vecchia
(città alta) located in the heart of the old city this is the perfect spot for an aperitivo at the historic, Caffe del Tasso.
Santa Maria Maggiore
(città alta)
Duomo, Torre del Comume
(città alta)

little insider tip: In Citta Alta, you can go even higher. Go to Colle Aperto, following Via Colleoni and going out of the city walls and take the other cable car to San Vigilio hill. At the cable car ticket office you will be able to find leaflets about itineraries on the area. Beautiful strolls in this area and views of Bergamo Alta are promised.

ART
Galleria d'arte moderna e contemporanea (città bassa)
Accademia Carrara (città bassa)
Museo d'arte sacra Fondazione Adriano Bernareggi (città bassa)

SHOPPING
Berne, via borfuro 6 (città bassa)
designer clothing aspesi, paul smith, vivienne westwood etc...


EATS
Trattoria La Colombina, Via Borgo Canale, 12, tele. 035.261402 (città alta)
(this is a hidden, romantic, gem of a restaurant, is my absolute favorite! it won't disappoint, call ahead and reserve a table on the vine covered terrace with views of the beautiful valley)
Colleoni Dell'Angelo
Located in piazza vecchia (see photo above)(città alta)

SLEEP
Hotel Piazza Vecchia (città alta)
Hotel San Lorenzo (città alta)

SWEETS
Polenta e Osei is a Lombardian dish of polenta topped with little chocolate birds. Layers of spongecake and apricot jam make up the usual filling and the dome-shaped cake is then covered in rolled yellow fondant before being coated with sugar. Dainty little chocolate bird decorations adorn the top. Very pretty to look at and you will find them displayed in the bakery windows.

HELPFUL INFO
Train schedule from Milano stazione centrale, runs hourly, look at schedule here
Tourist info here