Bellinzona

At around the time we visited Konstanz we also went south, to Bellinzona, literally “war zone”.

The city is known for its three castles (UNESCO World Heritage) and is located in the valley of the Ticino River. As you can guess by its name it’s recorded history is mostly battles. At several points in the past it has been independent and it also has belonged to Italy, France and Switzerland. When you see the surrounding valley it’s easy to understand how strategically important it must have been as a safe pass through the Alps.

We started the visit with the castles:

And after Castelgrande we decided we had had enough castles and we went down to the old town to visit the main churches. The first one, Church di S. Maria delle Grazie, had a beautiful fresco:

And two surprises for which I’m sure there is a rational explanation:

In summary: beautiful little town that feels pretty medieval with very interesting surroundings. I wonder what it was like to live here hundreds of years ago.