Bellinzona is the capital of canton Ticino. It is a nice Italian-speaking town.
It is world-wide known for its three medieval castles which are together forming a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The biggest one is called, what a surprise, Castello Grande.
It was built on a high rocky hill.
The original castle was built in the thirteenth century and then rebuilt a number of times. As a result, it is still impressive.
It is surrounded by a high wall with a large path where in the old days soldiers guarding the castle, Bellinzona and the whole valley were walking.
It is topped up with some symmetric structures. To be honest I am not sure if they were built with a purpose or just for aesthetic reasons.
The hill below the castle is covered by vineyards that go next to the ramparts. In the back you can see the Alps still covered with snow.
And on the other side of the valley you can see the other two castles. The upper one is a bit too high but let me take you to the one just opposite.
Let's go down to the old town first. Some of the residential buildings are really interesting.
I like these decorations.
Looking at this tower I first thought that it was a church. But not, it is the Town Hall.
The main church in town, Collegiata of Ss. Peter and Steven, is a few steps away. We need to past next to it to reach our second castle today.
The road to the next castle is long, narrow and steep.
As we arrive to the Montebello castle, the familiar wall with lily-shaped decorations welcomes us. You can see clearly now, that they have holes through which the defenders were able to shoot at the attackers while still being hidden and protected.
The inner courtyard is rather small and not really interesting.
In the middle stands a tower.
Let's go up on the walls.
On the left, you can see Castello Grande that we have just visited.
On the right comes the third castle - Saso Corbaro.
I must say that even though the Bellinzona castles were maybe not impressive from architectural perspective, altogether they are really worth a visit. So if ever you come to Ticino, make sure you do not miss them!
It is world-wide known for its three medieval castles which are together forming a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The biggest one is called, what a surprise, Castello Grande.
It was built on a high rocky hill.
The original castle was built in the thirteenth century and then rebuilt a number of times. As a result, it is still impressive.
It is surrounded by a high wall with a large path where in the old days soldiers guarding the castle, Bellinzona and the whole valley were walking.
It is topped up with some symmetric structures. To be honest I am not sure if they were built with a purpose or just for aesthetic reasons.
The hill below the castle is covered by vineyards that go next to the ramparts. In the back you can see the Alps still covered with snow.
And on the other side of the valley you can see the other two castles. The upper one is a bit too high but let me take you to the one just opposite.
Let's go down to the old town first. Some of the residential buildings are really interesting.
I like these decorations.
Looking at this tower I first thought that it was a church. But not, it is the Town Hall.
The main church in town, Collegiata of Ss. Peter and Steven, is a few steps away. We need to past next to it to reach our second castle today.
The road to the next castle is long, narrow and steep.
As we arrive to the Montebello castle, the familiar wall with lily-shaped decorations welcomes us. You can see clearly now, that they have holes through which the defenders were able to shoot at the attackers while still being hidden and protected.
The inner courtyard is rather small and not really interesting.
In the middle stands a tower.
Let's go up on the walls.
On the left, you can see Castello Grande that we have just visited.
On the right comes the third castle - Saso Corbaro.
I must say that even though the Bellinzona castles were maybe not impressive from architectural perspective, altogether they are really worth a visit. So if ever you come to Ticino, make sure you do not miss them!
to na co chyba przede wszystkim zwróciłam uwagę to przepiękna pogoda, którą bardzo ale to bardzo chciałabym zobaczyć i u nas w Polsce - najlepiej już, teraz, zaraz :)
ReplyDelete