2022
Stage 9: The video. Sesto Calende - Varese
Ninth and last day of my cycling trip to the lakes. I have reserved a final surprise for you. Departure at 9:30 along the Ticino on the left bank, but I immediately abandon it to direct me towards Lake Comabbio. The climbs begin immediately, but in the midst of incredibly beautiful woods. I discovered that Lombardy, in particular the province of Varese, is a succession of woods, lakes and the territory continues to change, although it is also full of road infrastructures. I let the navigator lead me, but trying to avoid when I see that the road is not my thing. For today it behaved well having set it only on paved roads, however it made me do a couple of km on dirt road anyway. I go up in altitude to get to Lake Comabbio after about 10 km. It really impresses me for its pleasant beauty and for how the cycle path around the lake is organized. It is a continuous passage through woods and reeds and in some flashes you can enjoy the beauty of the lake water with the reflections of the trees and with the blue of the sky. You go up again and go towards the lake of which I was elected king, precisely for all the things I am going to say in these writings, the lake of Monate (it means nonsense in Venetian dialect). This too is bordered by hills and woods.
From the town of Monate, along the BI12 route, point on Lake Varese. It is the largest body of water, of all those I have met today, and not just these three. Here too it is all lined with woods and you travel on the cycle path in continuous ups and downs, even challenging ones. Once in Capolago I find a detour that indicates Varese railway stations. Here they are so well organized, that they foresee the intersecting cycle paths towards the stations. And this is the moment that I realize that I have not understood anything about geography in the past years. In fact, I have always considered Varese as a city in the Po Valley, with cabbage! To get to Varese I have to get off the bike a lot of times, because the roads proposed as cycle paths to get to the stations, in my opinion, even those who have an electric bike, have to do some effort. However, the route was beautiful in the middle of fields, in the flat areas, with riding schools, and farms and in the background, always the lake. I arrive at the hotel and after a first shower, I am going to do what will be the last thing of the trip.
I stored my bicycle in the hotel and by public transport I go to the start of the climb at about 500 meters above sea level, to be done exclusively on foot, which will take me, through the path of the 14 Chapels dedicated to the Mystery of the Rosary, to the 820 meters of the Sacro Monte di Varese, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with the Sanctuary of Mary, apparently founded in the 4th century by Sant'Ambrogio. A road, all cobbled, climbs with a good slope, in a path also made by Pope Wojtyla in 1984.
The Joyful Mysteries are from the first to the fifth chapel, the Sorrowful Mysteries are from the sixth to the tenth chapel, the Glorious Mysteries are from the eleventh chapel to the 15th, that is the Sanctuary. Each change of mysteries is marked by an arch and a fountain. I refresh my memory on the Mysteries of the Rosary, as, inside each of the chapels, there is a terracotta representation of the Mystery. The Annunciation of the Angel to the Virgin Mary; The Visit of Mary to Elizabeth; The Birth of Jesus in the Grotto of Bethlehem; The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple; The Finding of Jesus among the Doctors in the Temple. garden of olives; The scourging of Jesus at the column; The crowning with thorns; The ascent to Calvary; The crucifixion and death of Jesus; The resurrection of Jesus; The ascension of Jesus to Heaven; The descent of the Holy Spirit in the Upper Room ; The Assumption of the Virgin Mary into Heaven; The Coronation of the Virgin Mary.In addition, the interior of the chapels is frescoed.
I tried to take photos of the interior through the stained glass windows, which close all the chapels, to repair these masterpieces from the elements. The third chapel is noteworthy with a mural, executed in 1983 by Renato Guttuso, depicting the Flight into Egypt (a painting by Guttuso can reach as much as $ 250,000). The works begun in the early 1600s ended before the end of the century.
The whole climb is covered with greenery and flowers, in the background the high hills, which surround the Sacro Monte. On the square a board indicates the peaks of the Alps and the Apennines visible on a clear day, but today it is not, but it sweeps 360 degrees. The arrival at the Sanctuary is signaled by the fountain of Moses. I go up the steps of this ancient village to visit the Sanctuary. Place of meditation and prayer. The silence is absolute and I try not to be a simple tourist and I stop for a few minutes too. I observe the frescoed vaults and the Baroque architecture. I notice the usual 4 bishops on the high altar. In going out, timidly, and just because I think of you, I take two photos, without disturbing, from the bottom.
Going down looking for other shots other than the climb, and seeing that the reflections seem less, I try to get better images of the interior, but with little success. Bus almost on the fly, and I go to the station to get the ticket for tomorrow, and that Saintn Chieftrain protect me and not let me get off the train. Evening stroll in Varese. Thank you all for following me, enduring the countless beeps of the photos that arrived, thanks for the deserved consequent insults, you kept me company and I tried to keep it to you. The next trip? Boh? I hope with Cri. With love, a hug to everyone!
Caro @plavarda thank you for your visit,
As someone who knew about travels and reviews in front of the natural spectacle of Varese and its surroundings wrote about Varese, the well-known French writer Stendhal enthusiastically informed his friends that he had had a «Magnificent vision! At sunset, seven lakes could be seen. Believe me you can travel all over France and Germany, but you will never be able to experience such sensations ». I imagine how Lake Varese was at the heart of such visions, today fully embraced by the cycle path, about 29 km long, which completes the entire circumnavigation of the lake.
But I can also imagine you may have fallen in love with the spectacle of water lilies, the absolute protagonists of Lake Comabbio, whose bike path at a certain point becomes a wooden pier and allows us to admire them up close.
Or I can imagine Stendhal getting lost in the rooms of Palazzo Estense admiring its decorations and its wonderful garden that made Stendhal excalamate that Varese is the “Versailles of Milan”.
And maybe it was there that he thought about how to best celebrate his wedding in the place and in the season where the azaleas and rhododendrons are an incomparable spectacle: "The wedding can be held in Varese, near Lake Maggiore, on 1 May 1831", Stendhal wrote in one of his letters from Paris, on November 6, 1830, to Daniele Berlinghieri asking him to marry Giulia Rinieri (marriage never took place).
Like you, Stendhal set out for the Sacro Monte to meet Angela Pietragrua, he wrote in his Journal "I only thought that if I ever wanted to live a few months in the midst of nature, I should settle in Sant'Ambrogio, a mile beyond Varese, which is a small town, like Sant'Ambrogio is a village "
Here dear, your journey was like shooting an arrow in the heart, the heart of Varese.
Thank you @plavarda for sharing your ezperience and hope my city give you the hospitality you aspect and leave in your heart good memories.
Your GLG @MagoDiAz
