Tips 1 - 8 of 8 Cremona Things to Do
|
|
 |
Things To Do: Piazza del Comune (Town Square)
|
Tip Rating:  |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
The Piazza del Comune is at the highest point of the town. The 11th century cathedral is here, along with other historic buildings called the Baptistery, the Loggia dei Militi and the Municipal Chambers.
When I arrived on a Saturday afternoon they were just cleaning up after a market that had been held there during the morning. There was newspaper stand on the square, where I spent EUR 7.90 for what turned out to be a very useful and informative guidebook to Cremona. (Published by Giramondo Libri s.a.s, Via Palestro, 44, 26100 Cremona.)
There is also a Tourist Information office on the square, which re-opened at three o'clock. There I was given maps of the city and province of Cremona, and the rather vague but still very useful tip that it was possible to cycle along the Po River to Busseto, rather than taking the main roads.
Second photo: The Bell Tower is right next to the Cathedral. It is 110.96 meters tall, according to my guidebook, and it was "presumably built in the second half of the XIII century, taking several decades for its completion."
Third photo: Guidebook and maps
Leave a Comment
Directions: 45° 8'0.08" North; 10° 1'29.64" East
Website: http://www.cremonanet.com/public/filmati/pzacomune.wmv
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Visiting Cremona? Read reviews about Cremona Hotels Real Reviews from Real VirtualTourist Members.
|
|
|
Things To Do: Claudio Monteverdi (1576-1643)
|
Tip Rating: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Opera was an invention of the Renaissance, starting around the year 1600.
Perhaps the world's first full-scale opera, or one of the first, was L'Orfeo by Claudio Monteverdi, composed in 1607. I have seen L'Orfeo several times in Frankfurt am Main and once, in a very different production, in Darmstadt.
Monteverdi was born in Cremona in 1576 and lived here for the first fifteen years of his life, until 1591. He probably received his first musical training at the Cremona Cathedral from the composer Marc'Antonio Ingegneri (1547-1592).
At age fifteen Monteverdi moved to Mantua, where he was employed first as a singer and viola player, later as the orchestra conductor, at the court of Duke Vincenzo I of Gonzaga. In his forties Monteverdi moved to Venice, where he spent the rest of his life as the musical conductor and resident composer at the Basilica of San Marco.
In addition to madrigals and other religious music, Monteverdi composed some eighteen operas, but the only ones that have survived are L'Orfeo from the year 1607, Combattimenti (1624), Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria (The Return of Ulysses, 1641) and L'incoronazione di Poppea (The Coronation of Poppea, 1642). I have seen beautiful productions of all of these in Frankfurt am Main in recent years (and Poppea also in Stuttgart).
Second photo: When I was in Cremona they were advertising a Monteverdi Festival, to be held in May 2008.
Third photo: Here's a photo from one of my Innsbruck tips, showing a portrait of Claudio Monteverdi along with some historical musical instruments at the Tiroler Landesmuseum Ferdinandeum.
Leave a Comment
Website: http://www.manteau.de/claudio.html
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Things To Do: Antonio Stradivari (1644-1737)
|
Tip Rating: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cremona is famous for its long tradition of violin making. It was started in the 16th century by a man named Andrea Amati, who is considered the inventor of the violin. Amati's sons and grandson continued the tradition, and the grandson Nicolò Amati was (probably) the teacher of the greatest of them all, Antonio Stradivari, who in his long life made vast numbers of violins, violas and cellos.
Stradivari is said to have built over 1,100 instruments, of which 650 still exist today. No one knows exactly why his violins sound so wonderful. The quality of the wood? The shape of the instrument? The thickness of the wooden plates in the belly and the back of the instrument? The varnish of the wood?
One theory is that the wood he and his contemporaries used was particularly dense because his lifetime coincided with the "Little Ice Age", when temperatures throughout Europe were unusually low. This caused the trees to grow slower and produce unusually dense wood.
Whatever the reasons, his Stradivarius violins are still considered to be among the finest ever made. In 2006 one of them was sold in an auction for over three and a half million dollars.
Second photo: The art of violin making has been passed on from one generation to the next for over four hundred years, and even now there are numerous violin makers in Cremona. The signs pointing to their workshops include the English translation, "Violin Maker," in case prospective buyers don't know what "liutaio" means.
Third photo: Here are some locally-made violins (but not very expensive ones!) on display in a window at the Tourist Information office.
Leave a Comment
Website: http://www.stradivariusviolins.org/
|
|
|
|
|
|
Visiting Cremona? Read reviews about Cremona Hotels Real Reviews from Real VirtualTourist Members.
|
|
|
Things To Do: Piazza Roma
|
Tip Rating: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
More of a park than a square, the Piazza Roma is the location of this statue of the Italian patriot, philosopher and politician Giuseppe Mazzini (1805-1872).
Mazzini's goal was to end foreign rule in Italy, and to achieve Italian independence and unity under a democratic government. When independence and unity were finally achieved in 1861, Mazzini was disappointed because the united Italy took the form of a kingdom, not a democratic republic. He died in Pisa in 1872.
Leave a Comment
Website: http://www.ohiou.edu/~chastain/ip/mazzini.htm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Things To Do: The River Po
|
Tip Rating: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cremona is located on the left bank of the Po River, which is the longest river in Italy. It starts in the Alps and flows in a generally West-to-East direction across all of northern Italy, before emptying into the Adriatic Sea near Venice.
Since I live in Germany I suppose I should mention that in German the word Po means butt, so if the Germans start sniggering when they come to this river you will know why. A popular form of gymnastics in Germany for young or not-so-young women is called "BBP" meaning "Beine Bauch Po" (Legs Belly Butt) as it is intended to get those parts of the body firmed up.
Update: Thanks to VT member toonsarah for pointing out that in England this kind of gymnastics is called LBT = Legs, Bums & Tums.
And thanks to tiabunna for informing me that many years ago, when chamberpots were in use, the colloquial term for them in Australia was a 'po'.
Second photo: People strolling along the dike on the left bank of the Po River.
Third photo: To cycle from Cremona to Busseto you first have to cross the Po River on this long bridge, which fortunately has a separate lane for pedestrians and cyclists. (It makes funny noises when you ride across it, but as far as I know it's perfectly safe.)
Fourth photo: Cyclists coming off the bridge.
Leave a Comment
Directions: 45° 7'42.64" North; 9°59'41.10" East
Website: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0205/feature6/
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Things To Do: Cycling to Busseto
|
Tip Rating: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
After coming off the bridge you soon come to these signs pointing to the hiking, strolling and cycling route along the right bank of the Po River.
There is no sign pointing to Busseto, but since the direction was right I took it, and it turned out to be an excellent and virtually car-free cycling route.
Second photo: Cars are only allowed on this route for a short distance, to reach a popular restaurant, but after this point the road is reserved for hikers, cyclists and tractors.
Third photo: Here's a sign marking the "percurso ciclotouristico" (cycling tourists' route) "Via Po", showing that it is open to hikers and strollers (note that they have two different symbols for these) and of course for cyclists, but off limits to cars. This route goes along a dike which is not directly on the river bank, but a ways inland, sort of a second line of defense against flooding.
Fourth photo: Looking back at Cremona from the cycling route along the dike.
Fifth photo: There is a smooth asphalt surface along the dike for ten kilometers or more. The surface turns to gravel shortly after you pass the village of Soarza, but continue on until you reach a place called Ongina, which is where the composer Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901) used to raise horses. Turn right there, and ride south along a stream, also called the Ongina, to reach Villa Verdi and later the town of Busseto.
Leave a Comment
|
|
|
|
|
|
More Cremona Tips
| Overview | Things to Do
Tips: 8 - Photos: 21 | | Restaurants | Hotels & Accommodations | | Nightlife | Off The Beaten Path
Tips: 1 - Photos: 3 | | Tourist Traps | Warnings Or Dangers | Transportation
Tips: 2 - Photos: 6 | Local Customs | | Packing Lists | Shopping | | Sports Travel | General Tips |
| Best Cremona Travel Deals
Italy Train Schedules
Instant ticket price and seat reservation on all trains in Italy
Fly to Europe
Our lowest fare - guaranteed. No online booking fees.
Italy Tour Small Groups
Venice, Florence, Tuscany, Rome 16 passengers or less on Italy Tour
Rome Vacation
Photos, Customer Ratings & Reviews. Save on Travel to Rome.
Rome Tours
Walking Tours in English Small Groups and NO LINES
Sponsored Links
|
 Comments for Nemorino about Cremona | | | | |
LoriPori Tue Oct 20, 2009 12:06 UTC
Interesting to read that the Strad had its beginnings here in Cremona. Also impressive is the wonderful church in Soarza. It is fun to go off the beaten path occasionally. You never know what you will see. | lynnehamman Fri Sep 11, 2009 02:07 UTC
An excellent informative intro to Cremona. Good to read the history of the most famous violin. It must be very special to own one, considering how few are left. Good photos too, Don. Thanks for sharing. | mvtouring Sat Aug 29, 2009 16:33 UTC
Did not know this was the hometown for Stradivari, thanks for sharing;-) | i-bella Fri Aug 28, 2009 16:59 UTC
You write great tips, and you pictures are even better! Cremona is in Lombardy, but it is more similar to Emilia's towns. |
|
|
email me
add as friend
on Apr 12, 2008
