Lake Maggiore
Lake
Maggiore - Famous for its colours and its scents, Lake
Maggiore offers the visitor a scenario whose beauty can be enjoyed
in a new and different way in every season; the famous islands
of the Borromeo Gulf (Isola Bella, Isola dei Pescatori, Isola
Madre, the islets of San Giovanni and Malghera), a tiny and
picturesque archipelago, seem to be painted in one of the most
beautiful landscapes in the world. Lake Maggiore is located
60 miles west of Milan and its northern part is part of the
Swiss territory. Lake Maggiore is famous for its gardens: Isola
Madre, Isola Bella, Villa Tarando and Villa Pallavicino.The
entire coastline of the Lake is disseminated with many historical
villas surrounded by centuries old parks, some of which may
be visited if arrangements are made in advance.
Local Places of Interest and Activities
The Islands - The three main islands may be reached
by means of an efficient public navigation service or by means
of the characteristic "taxi boats": the Isola Bella
with its Borromeo Palace (XVII century), surprises those arriving
from the lake on account of its majestic and almost unreal baroque
setting. Its park, a masterpiece of Italian style garden, is
laid out on ten terraces that degrade down to the lake, while,
today, the palace houses a picture gallery that may be visited
from March to October. The Isola dei Pescatori is a picturesque
village, inhabited by a small community that still makes a living
by fishing. A maze of alleys will lead the visitor to discover
the typical restaurants and the traditional open air market.
The Isola Madre is a botanical garden on water, abounging in
rare plants, exotic flowers and free-roaming animals, thanks
to the favorable micro climate, create on the island the enchantment
of a tropical green house.
Of great interest also the visit to the Palace (XVI Century)
where settings of the time have been reconstructed and where
marionette theaters of 1700/1800 are on display.
The
Botanical Gardens of Isola Madre - Its name identifies
this as the largest of the three islands in the Borromeo Gulf.Isola
Madre is distinguished by gardens which have preserved their
natural aspect, as well as by the presence of exotic birds which
fly freely among the centuries-old trees. Its not unusual in
fact to come across Chinese pheasant hens or white peacocks
trailing their tails between the budding camellia or the hedges
of flowering magnolia. As on Isola Bella, the gardens here have
also been planted on terraces, and include such rarities as
the spectacular cypress of Kashmir and a Jubaeae Spectabilis
palm of the venerable old age of 125.
Mottarone
Mountain - Mottarone's summit, at an altitude of 1491
metres, can be reached by car or cable car from Stresa. The
9 km panoramic road, "La Borromea", that leads up
to this splendid natural spectacle offers the observer remarkable
scenery along the way that includes green meadows, sparkling
streams and luxuriant woods, not to mention unforgettable sweeping
views over Lake Maggiore and, off into the distance, the Padana
Plains and the peaks of the Italian and Swiss Alps.
Villa
Taranto - Villa Taranto Botanical Gardens cover an
area of about 20 hectares on the Castagnola Promontory in Pallanza.
The history of the gardens goes back to 1931 when a Scottish
gentleman and Royal Archer to the Queen, Captain Neil Boyd McEacharn,
acquired from the Marchesa di Sant'Elia, the property known
as "La Crocetta", with the intention of transforming
it into one of the most important botanical complexes in the
world. He re-baptised it "Villa Taranto" in honour
of one of his ancestors who was named Duke of Taranto by Napoleon.
The importance of the gardens is due not only to the botanical
patrimony contained therein, a wealth of over 20,000 varieties
and species, but also to the beauty and harmony of the complex.
The English stamp on the park has been enriched by Latin taste
and sensibility through the insertion of elements typical to
Italian gardens.
The
Botanical Gardens of Isola Bella - This is an example
of a typical Italian garden where nature has been modified to
create a scenographic vision enriched with ornamental architecture
and sculpture, reflecting pools and fountains and decorative
flowerbeds laid out according to geometric designs, the various
species planted in harmonious arrangements of colour. Narrow
paths around the palazzo lead to the inner courtyards, like
the Cortile di Diana or theTeatro di Ercole, adorned with a
series of statues inserted into special niches, or the Giardino
d'Amore which is especially famous for being the setting of
romantic encounters between Napoleon and Josephine Bonaparte
during their sojourn here in 1797. The gardens were further
embellished with numerous botanical species, from jasmine to
orange and pomegranate, not to mention, orchids, rhododendron,
azaleas and camellias. Isola Bella then, not only for having
been named after Isabella d'Adda, Carlo III Borromeo's wife,
but also because of its magnificent gardens on the ten most
famous terraces of the Borromeo Gulf.
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