Bergamo

Bergamo is a town in Lombardia, Italy, about 40 km northeast of Milan. The commune is home to c. 117,000 inhabitants. It is served by the Bergamo Orio al Serio International Airport (ICAO code: LIME), which also serves the Province of Bergamo, and to a lesser extent Milan. The foothills of the Alps begin immediately north of the town.

CouchSurfing in Bergamo

Bergamo has some active couchsurfers ready to host visitors and friends, as well as a local community counting more that 30 members. Meetings are held at least once a month and surfers can find out dates and participants checking forum entries in the city group. There is one Couchsurfing Country Ambassador living there, Stefano. Bergamo is the most active CS city in Lombardia after Milan.

Visiting Bergamo

The town has two centres: "Città alta" (upper city), a hilltop medieval town, surrounded by 17th century cyclopic defensive walls, and the "Città bassa" (lower city). The two parts of the town are connected by either by funicular/cable car and roads, however parking spaces are very limited in the 'upper town' and the traffic is blocked on most Sundays.

Città alta

The upper city, surrounded by Venetian walls built in the 17th century, serves as the historic centre of Bergamo.

It includes numerous historical monuments:

• Piazza Vecchia (old square)
• Palazzo della Ragione. It was the seat of the administration of the city in the communal age. It is now seat of exhibitions. Erected in the 12th century, it was rebuilt in the late 16th century by Pietro Isabello. The façade has the St. Mark's Lion over a mullioned window, testifying the long period of Venetian dominance. The atrium has a well-preserved 18th century sundial.
• Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore (Saint Mary Major). It was built from 1137 on the site of a previous religious edifice from the 7th century. Construction lasted until the 15th century. Of this first edifice remains the external Romanesque structure and the Greek cross plan, while the interior was widely modified in the 16th and 17th centuries. Noteworthy are the great Crucifix and the tomb of Gaetano Donizetti. The dome has frescoes by Giovanbattista Tiepolo.
• Cappella Colleoni, annexed to Santa Maria Maggiore, a masterwork of Renaissance architecture and decoration art.
• The Rocca (Castle). It was begun in 1331 on the Sant'Eufemia hill by William of Castelbarco, vicar of John of Bohemia, and later completed by Azzone Visconti. A wider citadel was also added, but it is now partly missing. The Venetians built a large tower in the Rocca, as well as a line of walls (Mura Veneziane) 6,200 metres long.
• Palazzo della Ragione and the nearby Biblioteca Angelo Mai (Palazzo Nuovo), designed by Vincenzo Scamozzi.

The città alta is also home to two museums, the Museo Civico Archeologico (Archaeological Civic Museum) and the Museo di scienze naturali Caffi (Caffi Natural Science Museum).

Città bassa

The lower city, having expanded rapidly during the 20th century, is the modern centre of Bergamo.

Of artistic relevance are the Pinacoteca dell'Accademia Carrara (picture museum of Carrara academy), known as "Accademia Carrara" and the nearby Galleria d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea (gallery of modern and contemporary art), known as GAMEC. The lower part of the city is divided into many boroughs: Colognola, Valtesse, Redona, Borgo Palazzo, Celadina.

Getting from the airport to Bergamo and viceversa

If you are going to/from the Airport, check ATB for timetables, prices and route. You can reach the train station and from there travel by train to Milano, Brescia or other destinations with Trenitalia.

External links

• Bergamo official website (italian)
• Bergamo Tour
• Università degli Studi di Bergamo website (english)
• ItalianVisits.com