That photo I took ain't too bad. It does capture the feel of this charming place. On June 20th we rented a little two-door Lancia and drove west over the mountains from Lake Maggiore to the smaller Lake Orta, mainly to visit the antique and highly photogenic village of San Giulio (Saint Julius, in English), and to take a water taxi out to look at Isola San Giulio with its ancient church and active Benedictine monastery. (We will post separately on the church, because its artwork is so interesting. And the saint himself lies in there, under glass, visible in gilded splendor. I would not take a photo of that.)
Most of the streets of San Giulio are too narrow for cars, and they don't allow cars in anyway (except for deliveries). However, there is actually a parking garage up the hill for visitors.
The village has at least a handful of medieval buildings - the only definitely medieval buildings we saw on our trip (other than churches and towers). Major urban renewal took place in Europe during the 15th to 17th centuries.
This village also has the best trattorias we encountered.
We saw one guy taking modeling photos. She was an edgy-looking girl, from the front:
More photos of this side trip on continuation page below:
A medieval building on the Orta San Giulio hillside. You can see the recycling of Roman bricks and stones:
Another one, on a side alley in the village:
One of those Renaissance era structures often found on waterfront piazzas, which probably served many purposes including providing a covered market.
View down one of the steep alleys towards the piazza and the lake:
A view down another alley, with a no-doubt neolithic religious object (or fertility object) in the center:
A view of the piazza, with another neolithic fertility object resembling an egg:
and another:
The ferry and water taxi dock on the piazza, with Isola San Giulio:
Boats on the wanterfront:
It's a quick water taxi ride from Orta San Giulio to Isola di San Giulio. The basilica on the tiny island was first built in 926 but has had many revisions and renovations since then. It's part of an active Benedictine monastery.Here's a brief history of
Tracked: Jul 22, 12:13