Walking with the Sforzas in a Town of Beautiful Italy: A Day in Abbiategrasso

A quiet little town rich in historical monuments, where you get the impression that there are more bicycles than cars, where people stop to chat under the arcades that recall the style of the Ligurian towns, and whose name seems a wish for prosperity: this is Abbiategrasso. Yet this corner of peace is just a stone's throw away, more precisely about twenty kilometres from the frenzy of the Lombard capital. Flanked by the Naviglio Grande, along which many walk or do sport even on winter weekends, Abbiategrasso combines the merits of small towns with those that come from its proximity to the metropolis. Our walk begins right from the symbolic monument of the town, which more than any other bears witness to the strategic role Abbiategrasso had in the past: the Visconti Castle.

Probably built in 1382 by Gian Galeazzo Visconti, the Castle is aligned with the Naviglio Grande and with the road connecting Milan with Vigevano. Since 1865 it has belonged to the Municipality and houses several associations. Inside we admire frescoes dating from various periods, also noticing the inscription “A bon droit”, the Visconti motto. A young man who works at one of the associations suggests we go and see a room in the East wing of the building, on the top floor, which is perhaps the most mysterious corner of the Castle. Centuries ago it was a prison and on the walls you can still see the prisoners' graffiti. In this castle Gian Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan, was born, though he was not particularly suited to filling that important role.

In fact, after his marriage to Isabella of Aragon, he preferred to devote himself to the pleasures of ducal life, neglecting the rest and letting his uncle Ludovico Sforza, known as Il Moro, take on more and more of the duties. Besides the duke, Abbiategrasso has been the birthplace of several famous figures in recent times too, including the fashion designer Franco Moschino, the footballer Giovanni Invernizzi after whom the stadium is named, the cyclist Marco Villa, bronze medallist at the 2000 Olympics, while the singer Giusy Ferreri was born in Palermo but grew up here.

Visiting the town's most important religious monuments, we are particularly struck by the beauty of the Basilica of Santa Maria Nuova, and of its cloister, also because unlike several splendid cloisters of important churches in other cities, this one is open to anyone who wishes to visit it or stop for a while to meditate or reflect. When we were there, we shared this space of spiritual intimacy with a priest saying the rosary walking under the arcades of the cloister. The Basilica was built in 1388 on the occasion of the birth of the son of Gian Galeazzo Visconti, and underwent several changes and renovations. There is also the church of Santa Maria Vecchia, the old church of Abbiategrasso, where there was once a convent of Benedictine nuns, but it has been deconsecrated since the end of the 18th century, and we were told it houses a dance school.

We also visit the Church of San Pietro and the Church of San Gaetano, which is the most recent of all the churches in Abbiategrasso. There really is a lot to see in this town, so we are happy to stop for lunch at the Trattoria Bell'Italia: perfectly in tune with the beauty of what surrounds us, we enjoy a regenerating break. We settle into one of the rooms with its warm and welcoming atmosphere, and as we begin to study the menu, we exchange a few words with the owner. “Our menu changes every day. Everything we offer is fresh and made to order, and reflects the season we are living in”, Mr Marco tells us, who has run the place for eight years together with his brothers Tony and Gabriele. “We come from the province of Salerno. Here we built everything ourselves, renovating the place and gaining our customers little by little, thanks to our daily commitment”, the owner tells us.

We start with a nice pumpkin risotto, mezze maniche with sausage, and pizzoccheri with savoy cabbage. We also taste the excellent pasta with beans, among the most requested dishes of the place, made with a particular Campanian recipe. We taste an excellent Piedmontese draught wine, and continue with roast pork leg, venison in salmì, a nice braised dish. Some of us instead choose the donkey stew and the horse steak. Since we happened to come here on a Friday, we can also taste baby octopus with potatoes and beans or peas, a real treat. We end on a sweet note with desserts made by an excellent pastry shop in town: the tiramisù and the chocolate cake with puffed rice. We are sure to return soon, because we have seen that in Abbiategrasso between culture and hospitality you really feel good.

Francesca Bertha

FOR INFORMATION:

Trattoria Bell'Italia Via Carlo Cattaneo, 58 Abbiategrasso (MI) Tel.: 02/94608705