Lombardia occupies the main part of the Po Valley. Its northern borders are formed by the Lepontine, Rhaetian and Orobic Alps. It includes a hilly district with the major Italian lakes, from the Easter slope of Lago Maggiore to the Lakes of Varese, lseo, Como and to the northern part of Lake Garda. This region is rich in water, thanks to the Po and its affluent.
The regional capital is Milan. Other important cities are: Bergamo, Brescia, Como, Varese, Sondrio, Pavia, Cremona, Mantua.
Many of the attractions here are urban -- in addition to Milan, a string of Renaissance cities dots the Lombardian plains, from Pavia to Mantua. To the north the region bumps up against craggy mountains and romantic lakes and to the south Lombardy spreads out in fertile farmlands fed by the Po and other rivers. The Lombardians, originally one of the Germanic barbarian hordes who crossed the Alps during Rome's decline and ended up staying to settle down, have been ruled over the centuries by feudal dynasties, the Spanish, the Austrians, and the French. They tend to be a little more continental than their neighbors to the south, faster talking, and a little more fast-paced as well. They even dine a little differently, eschewing olive oil for butter and often forgoing pasta for polenta and risotto.
The lakes are among northern Italy's greatest treasures. Stretching from the Piedmont border across northern Lombardy to the Veneto border, backed by the Alps and ringed by lush gardens and verdant forests, each has its own charms and, accordingly, its own enthusiasts. Not least among these charms is the lakes' easy accessibility to many Italian cities, making them ideal for short retreats: Lake Maggiore and Lake Como are both less than an hour's distance from Milan, and Lake Garda is tantalizingly close to Venice, Verona, and Mantua. |
