CYCLING ITINERARIES

Lombardy is a kaleidoscope of natural and art beauties and it can truly claim to be a paradise for cyclists even if a remarkable density of motorised traffic exists. Moreover there are still a lot of quiet routes and, according to a sporting point of view, Lombardy offers the best of “mixes routes” in Italy; plains and hills here alternate in a series of slopes of all gradients, on asphalt and gravel roads, on earthen tracks and even on narrow country paths. The best periods for cycling in Lombardy are normally spring and fall but some itineraries can be made also in the summer period.

Bagatti Valsecchi museum

BAGATTI VALSECCHI MUSEUM , A REAL RENAISSANCE HOUSE

HOUSED in Palazzo Bagatti Valsecchi, in the heart of Milan, is one of the finest museum-homes in Europe. It is now a private foundation, set up by the Bagatti Valsecchi heirs to open the family’s late 19th century residence and collections of artworks to the public.

IN 1883 the brothers Fausto and Giuseppe Bagatti Valsecchi, of noble descent, inaugurated the new façade of their palazzo, tucked between Via Santo Spirito and Via Gesù, in the centre of Milan. Their plan to turn it into a home inspired by the dwelling-places of the 16th century Lombard aristocracy had thus come to fruition. And in keeping with their intent, the house was furnished with Renaissance artefacts.