Lake Maggiore & Around - The Italian Lakes - page 187

2 Sacro Monte di San Francesco B3

Sleeping

3 Hotel Leon d'Oro A3

4 Locanda di Orta A3

5 Piccolo Hotel Olina A3

6 Villa Crespi D4

Eating

7 Enoteca Al Boeuc A3

Ristoro Olina (see 5)

8 Venus Ristorante A3

Sights

PIAZZA

Piazza Mario Motta
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Here's a picture of how life really should be lived: rise early and head for a coffee on
Piazza Mario Motta, gazing across at the sun-struck Isola San Giulio in the early morning
quiet. From your vantage point, contemplate the Palazotto, a squat, fresco-enlivened struc-
ture sitting atop pillars like giant stilts at the north end of the square.
Once the seat of a local council, the Palazotto now occasionally opens for temporary
exhibitions but climb the stairs anyway for good views. The square burbles with local life
on market day (Wednesday).

Sacro Monte di San Francesco
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Beyond the lush gardens and residences that mark the hill rising behind Orta is a kind of
parallel 'town', the sacro monte . The views down the lake are captivating, and meander-
ing from chapel to chapel is a wonderfully tranquil way to pass a few hours.
From Piazza Mario Motta, Salita della Motta leads up a cobbled hill between centuries-
old houses to the baroque-fronted Chiesa dell'Assunta and then bends right (south) to the
cemetery and back right up the sacred mountain, with its 20 chapels scattered about, each

CHAPEL, PARK