"Menaggio" Top 5 Page for this destination Bellagio Off The Beaten Path Tip by starship

Menaggio, another magical name you hear in the lore of Lago di Como! Situated almost directly opposite or due west of Varenna, the waterfront promenade of Menaggio resembles the Mediterranean more so than what you think of as northern Italy. The beautiful waterfront promenade is graced by scrolled ironwork and lamplights, swaying palms and a profusion of flowers in summer and spring. Piazza Garibaldi spills down to the waterfront, and the little marina there abounds in fishing and sailing boats. As with other little villages surrounding the lake, all avenues seem to lead uphill.

Both of the professors I work for have stayed twice for conferences at the remarkable Villa Mylus Vigoni which is perched on the green slopes of Menaggio. The Villa, its art collections, gardens and museum were bequeathed to the German Federal Republic by its last owner, and is now the setting (like the Villa Serbelloni) for high level conferences, etc. Guided tours are given.

The only building I had time to go in was the Church of Santa Maria, also called the "Church of the Crucifixes", just off the piazza on a narrow, pedestrian street. Small with a beautiful rosetta window, the church was cozy and there was a slight perfume of incense in the air. I looked for any written information about the church but there was none to be found. I later found that a plaque embedded in the outside wall that I had been looking at was a memorial tablet of Lucio Minicio Esorato, a Roman thought to be the founder of the village.