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Brescia attractions
Brescia attractions
Brescia is home to several great museums. However, since it is not a primary tourist city, very few English translations are provided, and even if they are, translations are often so poor that you may prefer to try the Italian explanations.
Tempio Capitolino: Old Roman ruins, the last remains of what once was the city's forum during the Roman Empire, built by the emperor Vespasian. Historical placards are well translated in English.
Old and New Duomo: The unique pre-renaisance church has a massive stone dome and 12th century crucifixes. Next door is the city cathedral, built 150 years ago, with the third largest dome in Italy. The local hero is former Pope Paul VI, a native Brescian. Don't expect good English translations.
The Castle: Dating to pre-Roman times and last fortified by the Venetian overlords of the 16th century, the city's stronghold houses museums of armory and of the Risorgimento (Italy's first struggles for independence and unification), and provides eccelent views of the Valtrompia, the alps, and the city itself.
Santa Giulia's cloister: This museum and former convent houses a massive collection of art and archeology dating back more than 10,000 years and exploring the region's history from pre-history to Roman occupation to the Lombard invasion, etc. The museums also contain foundational remnants of Brescian houses from various periods. The permanent collection of religious art is one of the best in northern Italy, and the city prides itself in attracting traveling exhibits of excellent and prestigious collections. It is currently displaying over 100 of Van Gogh's early sketches, designs and paintings (2008-April 2009). Some English translations will be found throughout the museum, but they will be inconsistent and poorly translated.
La Loggia: The city hall and center of regional government, this large and oddly shaped building presides over the city's central square, where you'll often see political demonstrations, concerts, and markets. You can enter the building and look around in the main halls, enjoying the architecture and decor, but it remains primarily functional. The Loggia (lodge) also marks the northern end of the city's retail shopping district.
Mille Miglia: Until the auto industry made its dirty, cliffside roads, hairpin turns, and spectator presence far too dangerous, the Mille Miglia, which starts in Brescia, was one of the world's top automobile races. Since it was discontinued as a real race 40 years ago (following numerous driver and spectator deaths), it has continued as a museum of automobile history. The actual race, now a parade of refurbished and custom designed cars that slowly winds its way through 1000 miles of northern Italy, starts in May of each year.
Valtrompia: Though police are beginning to crack down, the eponymous highway through the valley is home to one of Europe's largest centers for transvestite prostitution. Travelers on a casual daytime drive will spot many of these and other more traditional sex workers, but look out--cars will often pull over quite suddenly, causing accidents. This, and not the fact that many of the workers are kidnapped from eastern Europe and elsewhere and enslaved by unscrupulous pimps and drug dealers, is in fact the cause of the crackdown. Sociologically interested tourists may find the drive quite fascinating.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Brescia
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Brescia Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.