Italian Lakes Road Trips by Lonely Planet

Author:Lonely Planet
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781760341589
Publisher: Lonely Planet
Published: 2016-03-17T04:00:00+00:00

Brescia

Pop 193,600

Urban sprawl, a seedy bus and train station, and the odd 1960s skyscraper don’t hint at Brescia’s fascinating old town, which serves as a reminder of its substantial history. Its narrow streets are home to some of the most important Roman ruins in Lombardy and an extraordinary circular Romanesque church.

1 Sights

Santa Giulia Museum, Monastery

See Click here.

Tempio Capitolino Ruin

(www.bresciamusei.com; Via dei Musei; adult/reduced €4/3; 10am-5pm Tue-Sun Mar-Sep, Fri-Sun Oct-Feb) Brescia’s most impressive Roman relic is this temple built by Emperor Vespasian in AD 73. Today six Corinthian columns stand before a series of cells. Guided tours (50 minutes, hourly) reveal authentic decorations, including original coloured marble floors, altars and religious statues.

Tickets also secure admission to Brescia’s nearby Roman Theatre.

Roman Theatre Ruin

(off Via dei Musei; adult/reduced €4/3; 10am-5pm Fri-Sun) At the height of the Roman era, the theatre of Brescia (then Brixia) could seat 15,000 spectators. The surviving ruins are now somewhat overgrown; find them at the end of cobbled Vicolo del Fontanon.

Duomo Vecchio Church

(Old Cathedral; Piazza Paolo VI; 9am-noon & 3-6pm Wed-Sat, 9-10.45am & 3-6pm Sun) The most compelling of all Brescia’s religious monuments is the 11th-century Duomo Vecchio, a rare example of a circular-plan Romanesque basilica, built over a 6th-century church. The inside is surmounted by a dome borne by eight sturdy vaults resting on thick pillars.

Interesting features include fragmentary floor mosaics (perhaps from a thermal bath that might have stood here in the 1st century BC) and the elaborate 14th-century sarcophagus of Bishop Berado Maggi.

Museo Mille Miglia Museum

(030 336 56 31; www.museomillemiglia.it; Viale della Rimembranza 3; adult/reduced €7/5; 10am-6pm) The original Mille Miglia (Thousand Miles) ran between 1927 and 1957 and was one of Italy’s most legendary endurance car races – it started in Brescia and took some 16 hours to complete. The race’s colourful museum is loaded with some of the greatest cars to cross the finish line, as well as old-style petrol pumps and archive race footage.

4 Sleeping & Eating

Risotto, beef dishes and lumache alla Bresciana (snails cooked with Parmesan cheese and fresh spinach) are common in Brescia.

Albergo Orologio Hotel €

(030 375 54 11; www.albergoorologio.it; Via Beccaria 17; s €64-85, d €84-94; ) Just opposite from its namesake clock tower and just steps away from central Piazza Paolo VI, the medieval Albergo Orologio boasts fragrant rooms dotted with antiques. Bedrooms feature terracotta floors, soft gold, brown and olive furnishings, and snazzy modern bathrooms.

Osteria al Bianchi Osteria €€

(030 29 23 28; www.osteriaalbianchi.it; Via Gasparo da Salò 32; meals €25; 9am-2pm & 4.30pm-midnight Thu-Mon) Squeeze inside this classic bar, in business since 1880, or grab a pavement table and be tempted by the pappardelle al taleggio e zucca (broad ribbon pasta with taleggio cheese and pumpkin), followed by anything from brasato d’asino (braised donkey) to pestöm (minced pork served with polenta).

6 Drinking & Nightlife

Il Bottega Wine Bar

(030 240 00 59; Via dei Musei 21; 6pm-midnight Tue-Sun, to 1am Fri & Sat, noon-2pm Sat & Sun) A cool crowd crams into this buzzing bar to sip on classy wines and sample piled-high platters of meats and cheese (€4 to €7).

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