Guide to Lake Iseo, Lombardy, Italy

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Guide to Lake Iseo, Lombardy, Italy

Introduction				house in Crema. The Tadini familys only
Lake Iseo, also called Lake Sebina, is				son died in
the fourth largestlake in the Lombardy				Lovere in 1799 where they often took
region of Italy. The lake was formed				holidays. Count Tadiniprovided the funds
bythe Valcamonica Glacier, and is 24				to built the Palazzo, in memory of
kilometres long and upto 5 kilometres				hisson.
wide. This width is not always obvious				The English writer and poet Lady Mary
asthe largest lake island in Europe,				Wortley Montagulived in a villa on the
Monte Isola, sits in thecentre of the				outskirts of Lovere in the 1740s. Lady
lake. The lake is situated just north				Mary is said to have written many
of Bresciaand Bergamo, this being				letters to her daughter inthe villa
reflected in the fact that it				garden, and been inspired to write
isadministered on the western bank by				poetry by thebeauty of her surroundings.
the Bergamo districtcouncil, and on the				In fact she declined an invitationto the
east bank by the Brescia district				Venice carnival saying, there are
council.				plenty things to do inthis village
The River Oglio, flowing down from the				which, by the way, is one of the most
Val Camonica andentering between Lovere				beautifulthat exists. Lady Mary came to
and Pisogne, mainly feeds the				live in Italy in 1741,supposedly for
Lake from the north. The Val Camonica				health reasons, although it is thought
has thermal spasand prehistoric rock				thatshe no longer wanted to live with
carvings. At the southern end of thelake				her husband. Lady Maryhad travelled to
lies the Torbiere, a peat bog and now a				Turkey as wife of the British
nature reserve.				Ambassadorand there she came across the
South of this lies the Franciacorta				practice of inoculationagainst smallpox.
valley, producing the bestsparkling wine				She had her own children inoculated
in Italy.				butwas never given proper credit for
On the eastern bank, a few kilometres up				introducing the practice in
from the lake, isthe Natural Reserve of				Britain. Lady Marys daughter married
the Pyramids of Zone, a uniqueformation				Lord Bute, whobecame prime minister of
of pillars created by uneven glacial				Britain in 1762, a year after Lady
erosion. Thesixty-kilometre perimeter				Marys death.
lakeside is dotted with villagesand				Lovere has another literary connection
towns, the main ones being Iseo,				in Georges Sand, the
Sarnico, Lovere,				French novelist, who wrote of Lake Iseo
Pisogne and Marone. These towns are				to a friend in
full of historical andcultural interest,				London, Come, I have found a lovely
yet it is pleasant to stroll along				place to live. Georges
thepromenade or linger over a drink in a				Sands real name was Aurore Dupin, but
café. There are avariety of water				she had taken amans name as it was not
sports available on the Lake and fishing				deemed suitable for ladies to
ispopular with the locals, tench being				benovelists in the 19th century, and she
the prized catch. Thereis a good				often dressed as aman. She had a
selection of walking and cycling trails,				long-standing affair with Chopin. After
and in				theirbreak up in 1847 she wrote the
Winter there is skiing north of Lake				novel Lucrezia Floriana. Theromance
Iseo in the Presolanoarea.				between a young Italian noble and an
Unique points				older lady isset on Monte Isola. It is
The fact that Lake Iseo is not well				said that this novel inspired manyvisits
known outside Italy andtherefore less				by ladies seeking romance to the area!
touristy makes it more appealing. One				In 1854 Lovere joined the industrial
of itsbiggest attractions is Monte				revolution, with thedevelopment of the
Isola, the largest inland lakeisland in				first large steel complex in the region.
Europe, which is easily reached by ferry				Lovere prospered as an industrial centre
and withno cars on the island it is very				until the 1980s,but this has left a scar
peaceful, making it ideal forwalking or				on the landscape.
cycling. There are also the Pyramids of				Valle Camonica
Zone,where the erosion of glacial				As you head round the north of the lake,
deposits has left pinnacles ofearth up				you may wish tohave a slight detour to
to ten metres high. On the western				visit the Valle Camonica. This valleyis
lakeshore arethe bogns of Castro and				90km long and contains 41 towns and
Zorzino, sheets of limestone thatplunge				villages, making itthe longest valley in
into the lake. North of the lake in Val				Italy. The healing powers of the
Camino youcan see hundreds of				watersof the spa town of Boario Terme
prehistoric rock carvings at the				were written about as earlyas 1497 by
National Park of Rock Engravings and to				the naturalist Paracelsus. The Italian
the south of thelake is the Torbiere				writer
peat bog and Franciacorta, the areawhere				Manzoni was a regular visitor, living to
the renowned sparkling wine is produced.				the age of 88. Nearbyat the Capo di
Getting there				Ponte is the National Rock Engraving
Nearest airports				Park,with prehistoric rock carvings,
Bergamo (Orio Serio)				dating from Neolithic timesthrough to
Brescia				the Iron Age. The carvings relate to the
Verona				history ofthe Camuni tribe throughout
Milan (Malpensa)				this period. It is an amazingsite,
Milan (Linate)				containing thousands of figures: an
All of these airports are within				enormous stonehistory book. One of the
reasonable travellingdistance to Lake				most common carvings is that ofthe
Iseo. Most international flights come				Camonic rose, which is now the emblem of
into				the
Milan Malpensa, although the low cost				Lombardy region. On this site is the
carrier Ryanair uses				Archeopark, an open-air interactive park
Bergamo and Brescia.				where you can try out various
Car: travelling on the Milan Venice				dailyprehistoric activities e.g.
motorway (A4) to go tothe West bank Of				lighting a fire, shooting with a bowand
Lake Iseo you would come off at				arrow and grinding corn and baking
Sarnicojunction and on to the SS649. To				bread. The
reach Iseo town, travellingeast on the				Archeodromo is a realistic construction
A4, you would also come off at Sarnico				of a Neolithic villagewith six huts
exit, andtravelling west on the A4 you				perched on a rocky hill. Some school
would turn off at Brescia up the				groupsstay in the village for a few days
SS510.				to get an authentic taste ofprehistoric
Public transport: There are regular				life. Personally speaking I think Id
connections by bus andtrain to Brescia				rather go backto my hotel bed and
from all the nearby airports,				shower. The traditional art
thenconnections from Brescia by bus and				ofwoodcarving continues in this area.
train to Iseo. The traincontinues up				The Cammunian Wood
the east bank to Pisogne.				Handicraft Workshops in Boaria Terme,
Once you have reached Iseo the most				where all types ofobjects from religious
relaxing andpicturesque option for				ornaments to babies cribs areproduced,
getting around the lake is the ferry.				can be found in the area. A fusion of
Guide to Lake Iseo, clockwise from Iseo				modern and
town on thesouthern shores.				16th century techniques are used to
ISEO TOWN				craft the goods.
I am really fond of Iseo town; it has a				PISOGNE
relaxed ambience,wide squares and a				Pisogne was an important centre in
lovely promenade with a fantastic viewof				medieval times forcommerce - a large
the lake and Monte Isola. It is quite				weekly market was held there. Thetown
lively, mainly with				had a ring of walls and a system of
Italian families and couples.				gates but not muchis left standing now.
Iseo was a business centre in Roman				In the Market Square you would behung in
times, and it was animportant port until				a cage suspended from the tower for
the end of the 19th century. The hero of				non-paymentof taxes due to the bishop.
Italian unification, Garibaldi, is				Tax was due on almosteverything -
celebrated with a statue andfountain in				fishing, hunting, milling, salt and
the main square. Also on this square is				iron. Thebishops were forbidden to
the				inflict any punishment that wouldcause
Palazzo Vantini, built in the 1833s and				loss of blood, so humiliation was the
now used as thetown hall. The Pieve di				next best optionto extract their dues.
S. Andrea dates back to the 12thcentury,				In 1518 eight women accused ofwitchcraft
and is distinctive because of its cusped				were imprisoned in the Widow Tower
Romanesque bell tower. The 11th century				beforebeing burned.
Castello				Just off Market Square is Santa Maria
Oldofredi was recently restored and now				Assunta church,which contains a
houses the publiclibrary.				150-year-old pipe organ. The facade of
Just south of the town are the peat				the
bogs; Torbiere del				Palazzo Fanzango is adorned with
Sebino is now a nature reserve. Lake				medallions depicting thecharacters from
Iseo was around 10metres deeper in the				the book I Promessi Sposi (The
past, but erosion of the bed of the				Betrothed)written by Manzoni. This is an
River Oglio at the southern outflow				important piece of Italianliterature,
meant that the lake levelbegan to drop,				telling the tale of how love triumphed
cutting off a shallow basin, which				for twopeasants despite the efforts of a
graduallybecame a large marsh with peaty				local tyrant. The book alsohas a vivid
deposits. During theindustrialisation				description of the spread of the Plague
of the 19th century local factories				in 17thcentury Milan.
beganusing the peat as a source of				At the end of the 17th century, Pisogne
energy, eventually excavatingmost of the				was home to thenotorious bandit Giorgi
peat deposits. Imagine digging up the				Vicario. There was not muchbrotherly
peatusing a caged spade with a				loyalty between the bandits as Vicario
five-metre handle!				trackeddown and killed Giuseppe Techi
Evidence of prehistoric settlement was				for a reward. Techis headwas delivered
found during peatcutting: stone				on a tray decorated with bay leaves to
arrowheads, blades and daggers dating				theauthorities. A double whammy, a
from				reward and lesscompetition locally!
5000 BC. Now the area is of great				Pisogne hosts the local festival of
scientific interest andhome to many				mushrooms andchestnuts on the last
species of bird and fish.				Sunday in September.
The Franciacorta region, south of Iseo,				MARONE
has become wellknown for its sparkling				Marone is situated in a beautiful spot
wine. In the mid 1950s a				in a green valley atthe foot of Monte
youngentrepreneur started to make				Guglielmo. There are ruins of a
sparkling wine emulating themethod using				firstcentury Roman villa, Co del Hela as
in the Champagne region of France.				you enter the town. Onthe lakeside is
Thismeans that the secondary				the Parrocchiale di tours, an 18th
fermentation of the wine occursin the				Century
bottle, a process which takes around two				Baroque style church with a marble
years. Nowthis valley produces the				altar. Marone was wellknown for
legally protected Franciacorta				production of woollen cloth and felt and
wine,assuring it has been hand made				thequarrying of dolomite. Nowadays
using the traditionalchampagne methods				tourism is the mainindustry.
in one of the thirty wineries in				A few kilometres uphill from Marone on
thearea. Visits to the wineries and				the road to Zone liethe Earth Pyramids.
tasting sessions can bearranged. Wine				They are an amazing sight: thin spiresof
lovers may wish to visit for the three				earth up to 30 metres high, with large
days in				granite massesperched on top almost like
September for the Wine Festival, with				hats. The Pyramids are notstatic as
tasting, special mealsand visits to				they can erode, causing the boulder to
cellars.				fall andgradually new pyramids are
Villa Lechi, a Palladian style villa				created.
built in the 16th century,can be visited				On the way to the Pyramids is the church
by appointment (phone 392 706 30087				of San Giorgio andon the outer sidewall
toarrange) Just west of Erbusco is the				are frescoes painted in the 15thcentury,
Oglio North Park, onthe eastern banks of				including one of San Giorgio slaying the
the river.				dragon.
SARNICO				Further up the hill is the village of
Sarnico is the first resort heading west				Zone. As you ascend youcan see what I
from Iseo. It wasoriginally a				initially thought was a ski lift, above
prehistoric stilt village, as it stands				the road.
where thelakes narrows and once again				It is in fact suspended containers,
becomes the River Oglio.				which carry the dolomitedown from the
There are frescoes dating from 1200 AD				Calarusso quarry. In some respects
in the church San				itreminded me of a Swiss alpine village;
Nazario e Rocca di Castione. You can				the air was so freshand crisp. There
still see ruinedmedieval ramparts.				are two interesting churches on the
For some Sarnico is best known as the				Piazza
home of thepremier speedboat company				Almici: The octagonal 18th century Beata
Riva. One of the mostfascinating aspects				Veringe di
of the companys story to me is				Lourdes and the 17th century
thejourney of Pietro Riva from his				Parrocchiale S Giovanii
hometown of Lagio on the				Ballista, containing wooden works of art
Lake Como to Sarnico in 1842. The young				by Andrea Falconi.
Pietro wastravelling to start a new job				The festival of honey is held in the
repairing boats in Sarnico; his				town square at thebeginning of August.
70-mile journey took him two days,				From Zone there are several walkingpaths
travelling by boat, trainand coach.				and, if you're feeling energetic, one to
His repairs were so successful that he				the summit of
was soon beingcommissioned to build				Monte Guglielmo.
boats. The boat building businessgrew				MONTE ISOLA
under Pietros son, Ernesto, who began				The largest lake island in Europe is 3km
producedboats powered by piston engines.				long, rising to anelevation of 600m, and
In 1912 Ernestos son Serafino achieved a				is sometimes referred to as thepearl of
speed of 24kilometres an hour in a				Iseo. Only public service four wheeled
speedboat. Riva became aprestigious				vehicles areallowed on the island. If
brand, sought by the rich and famous as				you want to see more of the islandyou
astatus symbol. However you no longer				can rent a bicycle or use the local bus.
see speedboats on				There is also theoption to take the
Lake Iseo because they were banned for				gentle level walk along the southern
environmentalreasons in 1976!				coastfrom the village of Peschiera
Sarnico is home to the Bellini Gallery,				Maraglio to Sensole and returnon the
a picture galleryexhibiting around 150				ferry from Sensole. If you are feeling
pieces, mainly from the periodbetween				energetic youcan visit the 13th century
the 16th and 18th centuries. The Gallery				Il Santuario della Madonna della
is in theold part of the city and was				Cerinole, which is situated at the
formerly a nunnery. Also ondisplay are				highest point of the island.
some sculptures and furniture.				The 14th Century Fortress Martinango is
The Palazzo to Sarnico rail line winds				the ancestralhome of the Olofredi
along Oglio River.				family. It is one of the
Volunteers reopened this line recently.				best-preservedforts in the region. It
TrenoBlu as it isknown is often steam				is unusual in that its highest tower is
hauled. The trains run during the				inthe centre.
Summer. There are rail connections from				The population of the island is around
Bergamo and				1700, with those notemployed in tourism
Milan.				working as fishermen, in boatyards
Just outside Sarnico, heading east,				ormaking nets. In fact, the nets for
stands the Faccononivilla, designed by				the goal posts of the 1982
one of Italys best Art Nouveau				Football World Cup were made locally.
architects,				Guess what - Italywon the Cup that year!
Sommaruga, for the wealthy Faccanoni				There are still numerous naets,
family. The villa onthe lakeshore				thetypical wooden local fishing boats,
exemplifies Sommarugas trademark				to be seen. Some of thecatch is left
Florealestyle.				outside to dry in the sun in the
RIVA DI SOLTO				traditionalmanner.
The stretch from Tavernola north				You can visit a traditional boatyard,
constitutes the mostdramatic stretch of				Cantiere Nautico in
the west bank. Just try to blot out				Peschiere Maraglio, and see the
thequarry at Tavernola! Riva is a				construction of thehandmade wooden
pretty fishing hamlet, full ofarches and				boats.
alleys. The old centre is up the hill at				I think that Monte Isola is a charming,
Zorzino.				tranquil place to visit,still relatively
The Zorzino Bong, with its vertical				peaceful and relaxing. It is very
slabs of limestoneplunging Mount Clemo,				thickly wooded,when you observe it from
creates its own enclosed bay.				the shore its hard to imaginebeing able
Further north is the Castro Bogn.				to reach the summit.
LOVERE				One of the big events on the island is
The Lovere area was occupied by the				the festival of
Gauls in the Iron Age,and by the second				Corzano, a hamlet that dates back to the
century BC the Roman settlement beganto				1600s. This onlytakes place every five
take form.				years.
Lovere still has ramparts remaining from				There are regular ferries from several
its period as amedieval fortified town.				towns on thelakeshore to the coastal
The oldest church is the 12thcentury				villages in Monte Isola.
Capell di San Martino. The town was				Suggested Itineraries
famous in the				Day Trip:
15th century as Venetian textile town.				Driving: it is possible to drive round
Most of the output ofwoollen cloth was				the lake with a fewstops in one day from
sold in Germany and Austria. At				Milan, Brescia or Bergamo and seeunique
thebeginning of the 16th century there				sights.
was a period of turmoil,with periods of				Public transport: bus/train to Iseo,
rule by the French, the Holy Roman				ferry trip from there.
Empireand the Spanish, which greatly				Trains from Brescia operate every hour,
disrupted the production anddistribution				and it is a half-hourjourney to Iseo,
of the cloth. There was more strife				and they also go up to Pisogne, stopping
later thatcentury with plagues and				at
famines. By the 17th century				Sulzano and Sale Marsino.
theauthorities had tackled the security				Weekend/Short stay (2-3 nights) you
problem of bandits andsome Lombardy				could either be basedin Iseo, spending a
noblemen began to travel to Lovere				day visiting Monte Isola, one day
fortheir holidays. The Basilica of				visitingthe west bank of the lake and
Santa Maria dates from the				one day on the east bank. Analternative
15th century and houses a 16th century				would be to tour the lake in a day and
organ case andfrescoes. The lakeside				spend aday either in Bergamo or Verona.
Palazzo Tadini contains the Schoolof				Iseo town would be a good base for day
Fine Arts, a gallery with paintings,				trips to the cities of
sculptures andceramics. Count Luigi				Bergamo, Verona, Venice, Brescia,
Tadini began this collection in histown				Vicenzia and Padova.

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Guide to Lake Iseo, Lombardy, Italy

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