Bergamo

On your way from Lake Garda to Lake Como, stop at Bergamo, about an hour’s drive west on the A4. As you approach Bergamo, the congested city doesn’t appear to be worth a stop—but it is. The shell of the city is deceiving because it hides a lovely kernel, the Cita Alta, or high city. The lower part of Bergamo is modern and a bit dreary, but the old medieval city snuggled on the top of the hill holds such treasures as the Piazza Vecchia, the Colleoni Chapel, and the Church of St. Mary Major. Should you want to time your stop in Bergamo with lunch, there are several excellent restaurants. One suggestion would be the Agnello d’Oro, a cozy, charming, 17^th-century inn in the Cita Alta. From Bergamo it is a short drive on to Lake Como.