Belluno - a beautiful hill at the foot of the Dolomites

Today I want to introduce you, my friends, to one extraordinary city from Northern Italy.

In one of the most beautiful places at the foot of the Alps in the Valbelluna valley is the very comfortable and beautiful city of Belluno, often called the "gate of the Dolomites".

It is located on the banks of the Piave river, with the city center on a hill. The most characteristic feature of the city in the valley is the view of the mountains nearby, covered all year with snow caps.

This is not a tourist center, on the contrary, it is from here the route starts in the most beautiful part of the Eastern Alps - pink Dolomite Mountains or just the Dolomites. The city is the administrative center of the province, and its name can be translated as "beautiful hill".

The population is only 36 thousand people, the area is 147 sq. Km, the city's spiritual protector is St. Martin of Tours. The only large-scale production located in a small industrial area in the city is the Luxotica factory, which produces prestigious Italian optics.

The exact date of the formation of the city is unknown, historians believe that it was founded in the III century BC. Under the authority of the Roman Empire as a municipality, this city fell into the 4th century. Its main feature is a strategic location that is very convenient for controls at the entrance to the valley.

After the fall of the Roman rulers, power over the city continued to Byzantium, then to Celtic and Longobards. But the most significant stage in the history of the city is the Venetian power of 1400 in the most powerful part of the Venetian republic.

With the collapse of the republic from the end of the eighteenth century and the rise of Napoleon to power, Belluno's control rushed from Austria to France and back. In 1816, the city received the status of "Kingdom City" from the ruling Austrian Empire, but only 50 years later it became part of the united kingdom of Italy. Monument to Alpine troops in 1947 as a tribute to the city in victory in World War I.

As a city with a long history, Belluno is naturally rich in scenery. Palace of Vescovi (Palazzo dei Vescovi) - Bishop's palace with combined Civic towers (TorreCivica) and fortress walls. Of the three existing palace towers, only one is left - the Beluno Auditorium (Auditorium Belluno).

Belluno Heart - is the Cathedral Square with the church of St. Martin - patron of the city, this temple was built a long time from 1517-1624, in architecture can be traced various styles of Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque - at the same time.

The bell tower of the temple (70 m) is crowned with an angelic wood carving (4.5 m), written by local master engraver Andrea Brustolon. But it must be noted the stinginess of decorating other buildings in the city, the magnificent baroque is not very popular among sculptors, because locals consider it a true decoration of the city - it is the closeness to the beautiful mountains.

Palazzo dei Rettori is the most beautiful city building in Venetian Gothic style. Here the Venetian rulers met during the 400-year-old Republican government, and now the local government is sitting.

In the Cathedral square is also the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie (Santa Maria delle Grazie) - this is more of a 1516 baptism built, with carved fonts from the same sculptors as Andrea Brustolon.

In the main square of Belluno is the famous Red Palace (Palazzo Rosso) - the residence of the mayor of the city, built in 1838 in Gothic style, led by architect Giuseppe Siguzini. This palace is connected to the city hall in the 13th century. The City Hall building is decorated with portraits of artist Antonio Tessari, as well as Giovanni de Mina's paintings.

Palace Lawyers (Palazzo dei Giuristici) Built in 1876 - now a city museum with a collection of archaeological findings from the Paleolithic period, as well as one of the most significant urban murals.

The city climate is characterized by high humidity, with moderate to low temperatures in the winter from 0 to -3 / 5 degrees. Summer is quite hot with an average temperature of around 20 degrees. Snow usually stays from late November to mid-March. In the summer months sometimes it becomes very windy, the local dry flow of sirocco covers the valley.

Get to Belluno can bus the Dolomitii Cortina Express route from Venice to the Adriatic coast, from the major cities of Veneto - Vicenza, Bolzano and Verona, as well as local railroad transportation, and from Belluno starting narrow volcanoes to the station of Ponte delle Alpi on seriously high around. 800 m.

In the Belluno area, you can fly to the local airport for light aircraft, which is 38 km from the city center. Near the A27 city motorway from Venice and SS51 country road from the nearest city on the Vittorio Veneto plain, tracks start directly from the city center and suddenly climb up the hill with the height of the Belluno location 389 meters above sea level

In the ski season - from December to March, there is a stable transportation system and seasonal bus routes to all the Dolomites resorts, down to Val Gardena from the neighboring province of the Veneto mountains.

Good impression, friends, if you have to somehow visit or pass through the beautiful town of Belluno.