COMO
Just half an hour from noisy, bustling Milan, Lake Como is a jewel-like oasis of tranquillity, a magical combination of lush Mediterranean foliage and snowy alpine peaks. One of the best vantage points for this breathtaking view is in Piazza Cavour, on the banks of the lake in the town of Como. The cathedral here is often cited as the best example of transitional architectural styles: to immediately understand what this means, compare the stunning gothic façade with the 18th-century dome above it. At the heart of Como's walled Old Town, Piazza San Fedele has many 400-year-old buildings and the basilica, one of the masterpieces of the maestri comacini (masters of Como). At the top of Via Cantù you'll see the old wall's most spectacular standing tower, the Porta Vittoria. Nearby is the very austere church of San Abbondio. Rest awhile in its cloisters, then climb the hill behind it and go to the top of the Baradello Tower, for a lovely view of the entire lake. Next, walk back down the hill and visit Como's third great basilica, the early romanesque San Corpoforo. 

Walking (or driving) along the western perimeter of the lake, you can stop in at the Tempio Voltiano, a surprising classic temple with marble columns and mosaic floors, housing the apparatus of Alessandro Volta, inventor of a battery that was the first reliable source of electricity. His name lives on today in the term "volt." Walk a bit farther in this direction if you want to visit the beautiful formal gardens and wild park of Villa dell'Olmo, a sumptuous lake home named after an elm forest mentioned by Pliny the Younger in the days when Como was a flourishing Roman outpost.

Before leaving Como, be sure to take the funivia up to Brunate for a truly spectacular view (and a change of temperature!). If you're a hiker, take the footpath up to Monte Boletto.

Cremona, a picturesque medieval town on the banks of the Po river, rose to world fame between the 16th and 18th centuries for its unrivaled expertise in violin-making. 

For many people, Milan is the airport through which they begin or end their visit to Italy and the city itself is overlooked. There can be good reasons for this, because in many ways, Milan is anything but quintessential Italy. Those cobbled Medieval streets you have been dreaming about? They are not in Milan. Neither are the Roman ruins or quiet public squares. Milan remains, however, an important Italian city in both banking and fashion. It can be said that Milan is to money what Rome is to history - this is a modern city we are talking about here, one dedicated more to la bella figura than perhaps any other city in Italy. Here everything that is modern and advanced finds its home: from technological innovation to fashion, from advertising to design, from ways of life to political "experiments". Milan sets the trend. Yet, beneath its thick aspect of a dynamic and modern metropolis projected towards the future, Milan conceals extraordinary architectural and artistic treasures. There is only the embarrassment of choice: the Duomo, the Castello Sforzesco, the La Scala theatre and the Brera picture gallery. It is a busy and crowded and, truth be told, polluted city - not necessarily a place you would want to spend more than a couple of nights. Luckily, the main sights of Milan (yes, there are some) are easily covered in a day, so if you want to pause in this bustling metropolis you can do so.

Pavia, 35 km south of Milan, is an old university city with fine Romanesque and medieval buildings, a castle, and an interesting historic center. Pavia is known as the city of 100 towers but only a few remain intact today. Pavia makes a good alternative to staying in Milan, with easy access to the buzzy city and Linate airport. Near Pavia is the fantastic Certosa di Pavia, one of the most notable buildings from the Italian Renaissance period and one of the most extravagent religous complexes in Italy.