Take a break in the Piazza Mercato delle Scarpe

Piazza Mercato delle Scarpe

An important square in the Città Alta (upper town) in Bergamo is Piazza Mercato delle Scarpe (Shoe Market Square) where the roads from Milan to the south (Via San Giacomo) and Venice to the east (Via Porta Dipinta) converge.

It is also the point of arrival for the funicular from the Città Bassa and is where the main street through the town, the Via Gombito, starts.

The funicular station and bar are housed in a 14th century palazzo, which was built for the important Suardi family and has a quaint little balcony overlooking the square. 
Opposite the funicular station you can sit under the porticos of a bar to study the square, which is of great historic interest. It is believed to have been the site of the city’s market as far back as Roman times and at one time there was a fountain in the middle that was a major supplier of water for the people of Bergamo.

Even today it is a good place to stop for refreshments when sightseeing. There is also plenty of choice if you want to have a meal. As well as the restaurant in the funicular bar, there are two more at the end of Via Donizetti and several only metres away in Via Gombito.

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All mod cons close to airport

If you are arriving in Bergamo late in the day or have to make an early departure there are plenty of purpose-built hotels handy for the airport at Orio al Serio.

And because they are modern buildings, they have sound proofing, air conditioning and many facilities for business travellers.

The NH Hotel is less than a kilometre away from Orio al Serio in Via Portici, near the Orio shopping centre.

Facilities include a fitness centre, sauna and gym and a restaurant and choice of bars.

The NH Hotel is about four kilometres from the centre of Bergamo. Book via this link, or for more information visit www.nh-hotels.com.

The Starhotel Cristallo Palace (below, right) in Via Betty Ambiveri is in a good position three kilometres from the airport at Orio al Serio and one kilometre from the railway station in the Città Bassa (lower town).

It is a modern building furnished in traditional style inside. The restaurant serves an American-style buffet breakfast and there is a free shuttle bus into Bergamo. Follow this link to book.

The UNA Hotel in Via Borgo Palazzo offers either a shower-sauna or hydro massage bath in the bathroom of all of its 86 rooms and has a fitness centre. The restaurant serves both Bergamo specialities and international cuisine.

The UNA Hotel is three kilometres from the airport and two kilometres from the railway station. Click here to book, or visit www.unahotels.it  for more information. 

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Covered staircase leads to salone

The Palazzo's covered staircase

An interesting architectural feature in the Piazza Vecchia in Bergamo’s Città Alta (upper town) is the covered staircase at the side of the Palazzo della Ragione. 
As was typical in Renaissance Italy, the staircase was built to enable visitors to access the salone superiore (main top floor room) of the palazzo from ground floor level. These days the salone is open to the public for exhibitions and other cultural events.

The staircase and the stone bridge that connects it to the palazzo were added to the original 12th century building in 1453.

Look out for the doorway under the staircase, which gives access to a small shop selling guidebooks, pictures and antiques.

A distinctive feature on the wall to the right, before you turn to walk up the stairs, is a set of stone gargoyles (pictured left) that were taken from a funeral monument in the former San Francesco convent.




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Magnificent Milano

While staying in Bergamo you are well placed to visit the great city of Milan, the capoluogo (most important city) in Lombardia.

There is a train every hour from Bergamo’s railway station to the Stazione Centrale in Milan and the journey takes only about 50 minutes.

As well as being an important financial centre, Milan is a mecca for fashion shoppers and a magnet for opera lovers.

Take the metro from the Stazione Centrale to Piazza Duomo in the centre of the city where you are bound to be impressed with the Duomo, which is the third largest cathedral in the world.

Walk through the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele where there are elegant bars and restaurants and designer shops. At the other end, Piazza della Scala is home to the world famous opera house, Teatro alla Scala (pictured below), where there is a fascinating museum with original costumes and scores and some items that belonged to the composer Giuseppe Verdi.

You can walk along the Via Manzoni to see the Grand Hotel et de Milan where Verdi died in 1901. From there you can turn into Via Montenapoleone where the top Italian and international fashion designers have shops.

Of course, you will not be able to see everything Milan has to offer in one day.

You will have to book in advance if you want to see one of the most famous paintings in the world, Il Cenacolo -- The Last Supper -- by Leonardo da Vinci, which is in the refectory of the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie.

You could head for the Brera district with its interesting shops and restaurants and visit one of Italy’s top art galleries, the Pinacoteca di Brera.

Or, you could choose to look round the mighty Castello Sforzesco, which houses the last ever work by Michelangelo, the Rondanini Pieta.

But do spare the time to sip a glass of wine and sample a typical Milanese dish, such as risotto alla milanese or cotoletta alla milanese at one of the city's many fine restaurants.

Salute e Buon Appetito.

Language point - Il capoluogo

This literally means ‘head place’ and is used to refer to the main town in each region, such as Milano in Lombardia, Firenze in Toscana or Napoli in Campania .

Roma is the most important town in Lazio, but is also known as il capitale, as it is the capital city of Italy .


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Sweeping views from San Vigilio restaurant

Stunning views from San Vigilio

If you would like to dine in style while enjoying spectac- ular views, try the Bar Pizzeria Ristorante San Vigilio, high above Bergamo.

From the terrace of the restaurant in Via San Vigilio there are sweeping views over Parco dei Colli (park of the hills).

Open every day, the San Vigilio offers a comprehensive menu with pizza, pasta, fish and meat dishes and salads.

There is also a good wine list that includes plenty of wines from Lombardia.

To reach San Vigilio, take the funicular (cable car) from Largo di Porta Sant'Alessandro, close to where the bus from Città Bassa to Città Alta terminates at Largo Colle Aperto. When you disembark at the funicular station at San Vigilio, turn left and you will find the restaurant a few metres away at the beginning of Via San Vigilio.
The map below shows San Vigilio in relation to Città Alta, which is the area in the map around the university buildings.

Inside it is bright, modern and spacious with some pieces of antique furniture and some unusual features such as a gleaming red and chrome ham slicer, complete with a whole prosciutto crudo (cured ham), in pride of place in front of the bar.

I enjoyed a delicious pizza napoli washed down with a good bottle of Valcalepio bianco when I visited San Vigilio in May 2010.

For more information about the restaurant visit www.ristorantepizzeriasanvigilio.it or telephone 035 253188.

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Castello keeps watch over Bergamo

Towering above Bergamo, the Castello symbolises the military importance of the city over the centuries.

The Castello's moat

Bergamo’s second funicular railway will take you up to San Vigilio, from where there are spectacular views over the Città Alta (upper town) and the surrounding hills, which are dotted with old villas and farmhouses.

From the funicular station, turn right and it is a short walk to the Castello, which was built as a defensive fortress with thick walls and four cylindrical towers, from which soldiers could keep watch over the surrounding countryside.
The Castello is thought to date back to the sixth century at least, but it is known to have been reinforced in the 14th and 15th centuries.

The funicular

From the Castello, there are wonderful views over the surrounding countryside and Bergamo’s Città Alta and Città Bassa below. It is well worth the two and a half minute funicular ride up to San Vigilio for the photographic opportunities alone.

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Prosecco or pastries at Balzer

Enjoy un aperitivo (an aperitif) in the elegant surroundings of Balzer in Bergamo’s Città Bassa (lower town).

Founded in 1850, the bar in Via Portici Sentierone (under the porticos of the Senti- erone) has become a Bergamo institution.

You can meet up with friends and colleagues for breakfast, coffee and pastries, drinks, lunch, English tea, ice creams, cocktails, vini spumanti (such as prosecco), salads and sandwiches.

Balzer’s pastries are hand made from recipes that have been handed down over the generations and drinks orders are always accompanied by complimentary tiny sandwiches and savoury pastries.

Balzer is particularly known for polenta e osei (a cake made to resemble polenta with chocolate birds on top) and Torta Donizetti, named in honour of the composer. 

Because of its position opposite the Teatro Donizetti, the tables of Balzer have at times been graced by stars such as Maria Callas and others from the opera world.

For more information visit www.balzer.it or telephone 035 234083.

Balzer is an ideal place to stop for a drink and watch the world go by along the historic cobbles of the Sentierone. Salute!



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