Bolzano, not only Christmas markets...

Short trip, in South Tyrol, during the Christmas markets. Or ... 'any excuse is good to go and stroll!'

 

Even this year with my friend Roberta, we decided to go shopping, so to speak, to the Christmas markets. Last year we went to Trent and this year we made a respectable program in the region of Bolzano. We have added our friend and travel companion, Michela train and a friend of Roberta: Cristina.
Michela and I decide to leave on Friday morning and stopping to visit Verona and then go and get in the late afternoon in Bressanone, a town that we have chosen as the base point of our journey, while Roberta and Cristina have reached us in the evening.
After a journey by train more or less normal, we arrive at Verona in the late morning, the capital of the province situated at the foot of the mountains Lessini. Deposited our backpacks and luggage to the depot we move immediately toward the center.
We the central Corso Porta Nuova, where the beginning is clearly visible above the Porta Nuova, to arrive in Piazza Bra, with its bars and shops, where it stands in all its majesty the Arena di Verona, still used today for plays and operas.
The square is full of street people and tourists, we are out of season but the people around with the camera there is something a lot anyway.
We immediately head to the Arena where paid the entry ticket (€ 4), immediately begin our visit from the center the arena. The Arena symbol of the city, was erected in the first century BC and was originally outside the city walls. Shows its wide steps in concentric circles, is supported by a triple ring of galleries. We do a tour scoured the various galleries, where the most external or lower, there are passages of different plays. From the higher tiers, you can enjoy a panoramic view of the city. There's little people, the arena, students and a few people, so we enjoy our visit in peace.
After visiting the Arena continue to Piazza delle Erbe, with its picturesque marketplace. After a quick sandwich in a bar in a side street of Piazza delle Erbe, we resume our tour in search of the elusive balcony of Romeo and Juliet. You can not come to Verona and ignore the place where you would turn this tragic affair. Thus we arrive at the front door of the house Capuleti ... a disappointment ... I had already seen me and I remember this place but as I was coming there was the massacre of cards with gum stuck to the wall U.S. ... told in simple terms' a crap! ' I do not know who is coming this brilliant idea that should celebrate love, but personally I do not like at all .. this myriad of fogliettini stuck on the wall .. Bleah .. After a quick look at the balcony and the statue placed in the small courtyard, there we go away in disgust .. can not be so damaging a building!
Wander a little 'for the city and then we go to the station to continue our journey. We must be in Bressanone before 20.00, the closing hours of the reception for the hostel where staying, to collect the room key.
As we reach the station we pass in front of a pastry with many delicacies on display that call us with such insistence and the fact that the sandwich eaten at lunch was not much (the photo was so beautiful but the result was a little 'too simplified) decide to enter and return with a nice dolcetto.
Arrive at the station, collect our luggage at the deposit (€ 3.7, a little 'Strozzina as prices) and we resume our journey to reach Bressanone where the sun is already down. We consulted a map to find the shortest way that allows us to reach the hostel, located behind the Piazza del Duomo, the square where there is the Christmas market, so that you pass to go all'ostello. Let's say you could not choose a better solution. Precisely in the center of the country, or at least close to those that are in our interest and our needs, since we are not in the car and we have to move on foot.
Made recordings of the event collect our keys and go up in the room. The hostel is very nice, all in order, clean, like new. It 'very quiet, there are other people but o well soundproofed or people are well distributed on the plans because we do not hear any noise coming from nearby rooms.
Our room is on the third floor, you can reach with the stairs or the elevator, is a quadruple room with private facilities. E 'molto bella, has a small hall and two adjacent rooms very spacious. Even the bathroom is very large and features two large windows. Bed linen, soft duvets 4, was included in the price while the bath no. So each of us is necessary to reach the home.
We just honestly systemic and Michela and I choose the bed, it will mean that in case of protests we assert our right to seniority and they arrive before .. eh eh ...
After a sistematina we go in search of a pizza for dinner. Take a table for 4 and expecting the arrival of Roberta and Cristina. The train of course is a little 'behind us but we will be surprised to the contrary!
After the pizza we give the pleasure of a good dolcetto, who strudel and who Sacher. After that we return to your room. The streets of the country are very few, temperatures are certainly not pleasant.

Hostel: 27 € per night - Youth Hostel - Via Bruno 2 - 39042 Bressanone - Phone +39 0472 279 999 - E-Mail: bressanone@ostello.bz - www.jugendherberge.it

Sveglia taken .. we must go and take a train at 9, which will lead us to Vipiteno. The first country and the marketplace that we decided to visit.
For breakfast there is a lot of stuff, milk, tea, coffee, cereals, yogurt, jams, honey, nutella, butter, salami, cheese .. . ... in short need to eat for a week. The breakfast room is very large but it is virtually empty, are only a few tables occupied.
After breakfast and quest'abbondante be nice padded against the cold at a time leave the station, the first marketplace for us. In ticket sold us a ticket (€ 5.00) a 'particular, we explain that we need to validate a particular punching where, before going on the ticket must enter the code of the destination. A sort of one-mile special, like a cash .. do not understand well where even what is written is true. We are somewhat 'dubious but we take our chip cards must be validated and there are going to wait for the train on track.
Vipiteno arrived at the station you can not just say that it is in the center of the country, is not far but it is not even in the center. We, like many other off the train, we move towards the city center that is a real chaos of people.
Vipiteno, thanks to its strategical position, it will meet three valleys, has always lived on trade. Very impressive the way the New City and Old City street, the latter located in the heart of the city. Just to do some 'culture ... eh eh he ... Vipiteno to be told that it was destroyed by fire will l443.

And 'Saturday and people in these markets around any lot, maybe too much, including signed so we can not complain about the confusion.
Let's look at the shop windows along the main street. It 's a series of houses by the bright colored facades with the inevitable Erker (windows protruding), and shops with signs in wrought iron. And then ... finally come to the banquet in the wood market. Per se, the market is not huge, but the context in which it is placed, this pedestrian street full of shops, and the small square that appears more or less in the middle of the street makes it pretty and characteristic. There are those who say that one saw a market he had seen them all ... some things are for sale, but the villages are beautiful, the context in which they are posted, and perhaps this strange atmosphere that Christmas, even though we are in November, is feeling the Christmas close neighbor. There are stalls of objects in wood, statuettes and objects to the Crib, Christmas balls from the various shapes, colors and prices (and prices! To decorate a tree of average size should be a loan!), Local crafts, cakes , vin-brulè and various delicious: sweet and salty. In fact, I bought a bag of dried apple slices covered with chocolate for my maritini who remained at home.
After a walk among the stalls all together and having listened for a while 'a choir intoned the Christmas songs, as Roberta and Cristina are more accustomed to shopping and Michela and I want to go to put the nose around the country we are divided giving appointment for lunch. So while they are shopping for damage to the streets we wander around the country. Choose less crowded streets and tourist much to see some 'surroundings. Indeed choose a path that leads us out of the country and not wanting to retrace back to back in center to make a long tour. But both Roberta and Cristina are involved in shopping and do not notice too much of our late.
In the afternoon we return to Brixen and a little stroll 'through the streets of cities and among the market stalls in Piazza del Duomo. The stalls, these wooden huts, all the same they are all arranged in a rather symmetric in the square before the cathedral. They are a feast of colors, lights and joy. There's a lot of people around and get closer to certain stalls is a titanic undertaking, beyond all starts to make even very cold.
Bressanone has always been the city symbol of the temporal power of the bishop princes, palaces, churches today are witnesses to this step. The Bishop's Palace was, in fact, the residence of the lords of Bressanone.

For dinner we chose a restaurant that prepares food, just to taste the dumplings, which we saw while walking in the afternoon.
We carry two super balls dipped in a sauce very tasty. Obviously, the sweet ending to our dinner.
After dinner, we make two steps to dispose of all these delicacies, the dumplings are not just leggerini and this evening we want to just stroll.
The city is nice, although in the evening around not encountered virtually no one. Turn a little 'to center, past the river and we are in a very narrow way characteristic riattraversiamo the river and continue on a pedestrian street that runs alongside the river, a sort of cycle path where we meet one person that leads to the fun dog. It is not very enlightened way as, in some way knows so much about film from yellow with a maniac that check just around the corner! Walk and walk and begin to make suspicious about the direction that takes this path, especially since there recalled that he had done all that way as we crossed the river the first time ... We look around us, and we target by choosing the direction to be taken by observing the position of the bell tower of the Cathedral of Assunta, which soars from houses. Our hostel is right behind them. So after so much walking you can find the way home and arrive all'ostello. Roberta, was that she wanted so much to walk, is more than satisfied ... having the wrong way has had a super walk, but tomorrow we choose the direction!

Dinner: Restaurant FINK - Via Portici Minori 4-12, 00 €

E 'Sunday and given the time available to us we decide to go and see Brunico, had initially decided not to go, but given that we are very quick visit to the markets in a step we do here.
So after breakfast we take back to the station to catch the train. Do the tickets (€ 6.25) and the Ticket tizia very kindly trying to find the most economical solution, between a normal ticket, and these strange types of chip cards that we have trimmed yesterday. At some point, after a while 'calculations asks us if we had surplus of chip cards. Will surely read the amazement on our faces, but now we try all in our pockets and skip out three, but the lady tells us that two is enough. Mah .. Sometimes everything has to keep his honor! Then, as the thing for the obliteration is a little 'complicated, the lady kindly leaves his office and helps us to validate these strange tickets now instead of having one of each we have one that is for all four remains of the two yesterday. We thus concluded that the cards are with the amount, every time you make a trip this amount decreases, and you can even recover the coins advanced on old cards. A clever system that allows you to save money compared to a normal return ticket, shame that the only information that we find deplians is written in German.
Bruneck is not a bad town. E ', the main town of the Val Punteria. Born in 1251 when the Bishop of Brixen puts it in his summer residence.

Both the marketplace and in the stores is all the chaos and the crowd as well. E 'Sunday and it shows: the group on an excursion by coach and unfortunately many are moving in the group between the banquet .. if it ends up, for luck, in the midst of one of these, you are overwhelmed by the current!
We do our usual tour scoured the stalls of the marketplace, then let Cristina and Roberta shopping and Michela and I go there a little 'a stroll in the country. Bruneck has the appearance of a fortress city dominated by its thirteenth century castle, with the streets of the city to put its foot Castle can be visited, the guides report that is only open to the courtyard, but we found everything closed. I take this opportunity to walk on these path leading from town to the castle. We do some photos of the city, we pass next to a small church and back into the center where the others lie ahead. Bruneck also, as seen in other cities so far is, with its Central Street, overlooked by buildings with Gothic Erker and crenellated roofs.
Even today, the temperatures are polar so waiting to go to the station we rintaniamo in a super crowded bar to take something warm. Among the markets and villages that have seen perhaps this is what I liked least ... as a marketplace, logistically speaking it is more dispersive.
The station decided to make tickets for the return home for the next day. It seemed easy but has become rather lengthy. Now we remain somewhat 'interdette because the cost of a ticket is much lower but then journey .. the tizia realizes the mistake and the cost of your ticket back to normal ... seemed too good to have everything I'm off.
Bressanone we returned to the marketplace a trip to finish shopping and then we visit the Cathedral of Assunta with 2 slender bell-towers that recall the religious buildings of Bavaria or of the'700. Between the cathedral and the nearby chapel of San Giovanni Battista, dating back to Roman times, it is expected that there is a Gothic cloister. It must be said that struggling to find the door that leads to the cloister, but then ... search search and arrive in the cloister. A chronicle of need, the guide indicates that this is where the council was held organized by Henry IV in the 'XI to elect the antipope Clement III, I was not there so I can not refute this truth!
Bressanone is as nice town, its streets of the city center, shops, the architecture of the buildings, the climate that you will make it a pleasant town. Features the streets and the ever-traditional colorful facades of the houses with the now known Erkel. The market is beautiful, as seen so far is the largest, is located on the square in front of the church and once the sun sets the lights of Christmas color the square.
For dinner we return to the restaurant the night before to try another specialty .. give us the same table the night before .. but sweet side tonight but are more scarce. Will be that it is Sunday evening and not have great expectations of the public but the choice is more limited than the night before.

Dinner: Restaurant FINK - Via Portici Minori 4-12, € 20

Sveglia soon because today we must also make the bag before taking the train to Bolzano. So after breakfast we run into a room to place all our stuff and try to put our purchases in the bags. For my part I have to pack up the ball well in glass painting for the Christmas tree that I have commissioned my colleague, I do not want to give it some shattered.
The day is not beautiful, Drizzle and cold, the mountains, a dash of white informs us that on the night it snowed.
Salute Bressanone and Bolzano reach by train. The town, located on the Brenner highway. Since the Middle Ages, the Brenner Pass, was the main communication route between Italy and Germany and even today, there are signs of this long history of shopping center and meeting point and clashes between two different cultures. Bolzano became Italian, just after the First World War (1918).
The city is a swarming of people who move, kids going to school, people who go to work. It 'Monday ... the city of his soul is usually tran tran
It 'still too early for the marketplace (p.zza Waither) that opens only to 10. So we are dedicated to sightseeing. Viale arrived from the station and then reach Piazza del Duomo. We move then to Piazza delle Erbe with the fountain of Neptune to travel via the beautiful arcades, with its attractive Gothic facade with bright colors and the inevitable Erker (protruding windows). To finally get in Waither square, dominated, as well as from the many stalls by the statue of the greatest medieval German poet, a Walther von der Vogelweide or something like that because frankly I do not know who he is.
Let us not go to the Museum of South Tyrol Archaeological Museum where it is kept "Ötzi" is the man who lived Similuan intron to 3500-3300 BC found between the glacier of Val Senales and Austria, both because it is Monday and today is the day of weekly closure.
Walk through the streets, do some 'of photos, even if the weather is beautiful and the light is not much. Eventually, the market comes alive with people and colors. Wander a little 'and then as usual we are divided. Michela and I are already some 'saturated with all things Christmas. So we decide to go and do a tour in search of a bakery to buy some candy to take home. Find a shop that sells teas, tea and coffee types. I like very infusions and stroll to the store to hear all those aromas and tastes and those on my nose very nice. I wanted to buy some but I was waiting for the order to give me the line so much time I will even come to the web ... At the end .. since that was continuing to consider all except myself I went, the worse for her ... a sale in less!
Unfortunately starts to rain, we decide to go and visit the interior of the Cathedral of Assunta with a bell that 65 meters high. There is an organist is doing the tests. E 'pleasant even to be listening, so much so that we sit on benches at the bottom of the main nave.
We stopped by Roberta and Cristina that we seek, (power of mobile phones!), They are dying of cold and want to go and get something hot. We go into a small bar where you will use the opportunity to eat something, because it is lunchtime.
Before going to the station, we take something for dinner, which we will train, and some 'of sweets to take home, which until now we only stick to but not yet bought. Michela take strudel while I saw that, modesty aside, I know to do well, I decide to carry the Mark tart Lynz.
So we return to the station, retrieve the luggage and we continue our journey by train, which would not be so long if the railways had not committed so much to make it such. In fact, arrive in Turin miss the train to go home and we have to wait after the train.
E 'stato un bel giro, the markets have been the excuse for visiting these areas and to enjoy, in advance, the Christmas atmosphere. The company has been excellent .. as they say .. 'sin that is finished'!