Lombardia: Brescia

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Brescia is a city with Roman origins. It’s not a popular city for tourism as it is quite industrial and large…having said that, I like the Roman ruins in Brescia and find the town to be a convenient stop when traveling from east to west (from Venice). I also like the countryside and have listed a few farms that are a great place to stop. However, if I stay in Brescia, I head right in to the historic center and in Brescia I head to the Piazza Vittoria and the Piazza della Loggia. The Loggia (today the Loggia is the town hall) was built in the 16^th century (Palladio had a part in the building of the Loggia’s upper storey — think fabulous windows). The 11^th century clock tower (Torre dell’Orologio) on the opposite side has 2 figures that strike the hours. In Piazza Paolo IV you have the two duomos (Duomo Vecchio — old/11^th century and Duomo Nuovo — new/17^th century). I prefer the old - inside there are works by Moretto and Romanino. The Broletto (old town hall) is located in this square too. For Roman ruins I head away from the duomos and on to Piazza del Foro. You’ll find the Tempio Capitolino (built in 73 ad) which is both a temple and a museum with archaeological finds from the city (including a Winged Victory). The Monastero di Santa Giulia (dates back to 753) and the Basilica di San Salvatore (9^th century) are must sees. The monastery is a museum and exhibition hall and the basilica is a museum of early Christian art (including Croce di Desiderio, a cross with hundreds of jewels). The Pinacoteca Tosio Marinengo (16^th century palazzo) is a museum displaying a large collection of paintings from the Brescia school (noted for the use of deep colors, religious scenes and composition). I’ll note the churches which are also worth a stop if you have time: San Francesco, Santa Maria dei Miracoli, Santi Nazaro e Celso, Madonna della Grazie, Sant’Alessandro, Sant Agata, San Giovanni Evangelista and Madonna del Carmine. All of these churches have paintings from the Brescia school. Brescia’s Market day is Saturday (head for Piazza della Loggia).