Close to home there are some incredible places that you don’t even know that much about. It often happens that you live in an area full of attractions and history but you know almost nothing about it, like those who live in Rome and have never entered the Colosseum or those who live near Venice and have never seen St. Mark’s Square. They know New York City inside out, though. Paradoxical isn’t it? Near Milan there are places where it doesn’t even feel like you are in Italy. Let’s go discover them to suggest a memorable out-of-town trip.
It should be made clear that going on vacation outside our country is perfectly fine, indeed. The world is wonderful and everything should be seen, but that is not to say Italy is any less, on the contrary. Every region deserves to be visited. Every corner, every town, every mountain. Our country hides treasures of inestimable value. And also places where it doesn’t even seem to be in Italy.
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A trip to Cappadocia
In the province of Brescia, in Zone exactly, is this valley with stone constructions identical to those found in Turkey, in Cappadocia exactly: fairy chimneys. These rock pyramids with a strange hat on top. Around these buildings go several legends. That they were the abode of magical creatures, that non-human entities built them. In short, really curious stories and legends. Whether they are the home of fairies or not is a phenomenon produced by water erosion.
Where: Pyramids Street, Zone (BS). The reserve can be visited for 2 euros.
A swim in a bay in the Philippines.
Among the places near Milan where it doesn’t feel like you’re in Italy is this oriental-flavored bay that takes you to the faraway Philippines. We are on Lake Iseo where you will find this bay with emerald green waters, vertical slabs of rock overlooking the water and postcard-perfect natural scenery. It almost feels like arriving in the fantasy world of James Cameron ‘s movie Avatar . You know the one. We’re at Baia del Bogn, a place rich in beauty and nature where you really don’t feel like you’re an hour and forty from Milan.
Where: Riva di Solto (BG)
A walk in a Florida forest
Florida is known for having these swampy areas with big trees sinking into them. Like the Everglades. A U.S. park that will introduce you to Florida’s tropical forests: an expanse of marshland from which various tree species emerge with their roots always underwater. Near Milan there is a very similar natural area with wooden walkways that cross several swamps. It is called Bosco Taxodi and is located in Paratico on Lake Iseo.
Where: Paratico (BS)
A tour of Las Vegas, now a ghost town
It is now an abandoned town, but in the mid-1900s it was a real Toyland with lots of attractions that drew personalities from all over Italy. We are in Consonno near Olginate on Lake Lecco. A rural village whose turning point came with the ambitious entrepreneur Mario Bagno who decided to revive the town by building: restaurants, a dance hall, a luxury hotel, a medieval castle, a minaret, a soccer field, a basketball court, a tennis court, a bocce court, a golf course, a skating rink, a shooting pool, an amusement park and zoo, a pagoda and a panoramic train .
Highly frequented, it quickly became the focal point for nightlife in the area. But due to two landslides, caused by overuse of the land, which blocked access to the town, Consonno gradually lost its popularity until it was abandoned altogether.
A dip in the garden of wonders
Effectively, we are not in Italy here. But in Switzerland, an hour and a half from Milan. Why do we include it? Because it is a truly bizarre park where you can feel you are in several parts of the world at the same time. Commissioned by Hermann Arthur Scherrer, a great traveler and art collector. The garden represents this man’s dream of creating something wonderful that represented his love of travel and art. Inside it you will find everything. Reproductions of Greek temples, Indian buildings, structures with Arabian references and many other wonders precisely. Worth a tour. Free admission.