| Parma lowland | |
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| State | Italy |
|---|---|
| Region | Emilia Romagna |
| Institutional website | |
Parma lowland is a region of Italy.
To know
Geographical notes
Between Lower Piacenza area, Parma properly speaking, Guastallese and the Po that delimits it, marking the border with the north Lombardy, the Bassa Parmense as well as the Po includes the Ongina, the final stretch of the Arda, the Stirone, the Taro, the Parma and the Enza among the rivers that cross it and make its countryside fertile.
Background
Land of lordships and fiefdoms, it was always in the Parma orbit for most of the territory, except for the area of the Diocese of Fidenza which was for a long time, at the time of the Municipalities, the territory of the Municipality of Cremona. With the advent of the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza it followed its fate until Unity.
Spoken languages
The Parma dialect is a language of the Emilian lineage, with variations in the border areas, which unites the whole territory of Parma; it also boasts literary works, especially a rich vernacular production of theatrical texts.
Culture and traditions
- The Busseto Carnival[1] it is an important traditional popular event. Known nationally, it is one of the most famous historical carnivals. The allegorical floats parade through the streets of the city on the holidays of the carnival period, attracting thousands of visitors and animating the whole city center. On the website of the organizing committee you can find news about the current edition, or the edition in preparation. The 2014 event will be the 130th edition.
Territories and tourist destinations
Urban centers
- Busseto - City of a famous Carnival, city of Giuseppe Verdi, capital of the Pallavicino State for hundreds of years, Busseto also offers tourists a beautiful historic center and good cuisine. .
- Colorno - Relaxation stay center for the Duke and the nobility of Parma, Colorno has been able to recover the beautiful Palazzo Ducale, or rather the Royal Palace with its park, from the decay that had prostrated it after years of abandonment, thus returning to deserve the title of Versailles of the Duchy of which it boasted in the past. .
- Fontanellato - The center is well preserved in its ancient urban planning in which the Castle stands out, famous for its frescoes by Parmigianino and for its frequented Sanctuary.
- Roccabianca - Bianca Pellegrini and her fortress give the town its name, one of the many castles that Pier Maria Rossi, lord of the place, had built for his partner. The Po Valley center is also linked to the memory of Giovannino Guareschi and his characters from Small world, don Camillo and Peppone.
- San Secondo Parmense - Perhaps most of its name recalls the cooked shoulder, a salami in whose production the town excels. The Po Valley center, however, also has other excellences to boast: the Rocca dei Rossi, the Pieve di San Genesio.
- Soragna - For hundreds of years, the Meli Lupi have lived in the Rocca, which has never known the shame of occupation or looting. In the center of the village, it is known for its beauty, for the richness of the furnishings and for Cenerina, the entity of an ancient castellana, ancestor of the Princes, which manifests itself above all when the descendants need help.
How to get
By plane
- The Giuseppe Verdi on the outskirts of Parma is the closest airport.
Other easily reachable stopovers are:
- Airport Catullus of Verona
- Airport D'Annunzio of Montichiari (BS)
- Airport Caravaggio of Orio al Serio (BG)
- Airport Marconi of Bologna
By car
The Autostrada del Sole and the Cisa motorway which joins the A1 near Parma are the most accessible for the Bassa area. The respective motorway exits are:
- Parma
- Fidenza
- Parma West
- Minicruises on the Po are organized in Polesine Parmense, also in combination with tourist tours in the Terre Verdiane.
On the train
- Parma station it is the closest station served by the major national lines
- Milan - Bologna line
- Parma - Brescia line
- Parma - Suzzara line
- Parma - La Spezia (Pontremolese) line
- Fidenza station
- Milan - Bologna line:
- Fidenza - Salsomaggiore Terme
- Fidenza - Cremona
- Fidenza - Fornovo Taro
Minor stations
- Milan - Bologna line: Castelguelfo
- Parma - Brescia line: Torrile-San Polo, Colorno, Mezzano Rondani
- Parma Suzzara Line: Chiozzola, Sorbolo
- Fidenza - Cremona line: Busseto, Castione Marchesi
By bus
- The TEP trucking company (timetables) connects all the municipal capitals (and many hamlets) to the city of Parma.
How to get around
What see
Itineraries
Parma castles of the Bassa
- Palace of Colorno (TO Colorno). The current Palace is the result of the profound transformations made by the Farnese to the primitive structure of the fortress built in 1337 by Azzo da Correggio; it was then of the Terzi di Parma, then of Barbara Sanseverino who between the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries transformed it into a stately residence, equipped with works of art and paintings by Raphael, Correggio, Mantegna, Titian. It has a large and well-kept garden, as well as a wood surrounded by a high wall. They are now used as a public park. After a period of neglect and decay, the Palace and the Park have been the subject of careful restoration works which have allowed a renewed usability.
- Rocca of Fontanellato (TO Fontanellato). The first construction of the fortress took place in the first decades of the millennium, but it was the subsequent rebuilding especially of the fourteenth century that gave it the appearance we know. The outer wall dates back to the last years of the fourteenth century and was completed before the middle of the following century with a square plan. The numerous furnished rooms display precious period furniture as well as portraits of the members of the Sanvitale family from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century and of the Farnese family of the eighteenth century. True masterpiece of the castle are certainly the frescoes by Parmigianino, a work of 1524 which deals with the stories of Diana and Atteone.
- Court of Polesine Parmense (TO Polesine Parmense). The castle was built at the beginning of the fifteenth century where a fort already existed. Completely renovated in the interiors during the following sixteenth century, it saw in particular the replacement of the coffered ceilings with magnificent vaulted ceilings. In 1780 it was transformed into the Barracks of the Dragons, who were housed here to combat smuggling. After 1860 it was used as popular apartments, until it was also subject to repeated floods of the Po which had very close to its course. After a skilful restoration it is now back to full use also as a restaurant with accommodation.
- Roccabianca Castle (TO Roccabianca). The fortress was commissioned by Pier Maria Rossi, Lord of the place, in honor of his beloved Bianca Pellegrini; the castle and the woman, merging their names, have formed the toponym of the town that has supplanted the ancient name of Rezinoldo or Arzenolto (high embankment). Of considerable size, it develops according to the layout of the castles of the plain, a large quadrilateral with corner towers and central tower on the access side, and a high central keep. Construction began in 1450 and ended fifteen years later.
- Rocca of San Secondo (TO San Secondo Parmense). La Rocca was born in 1385; its client is Bertrando Rossi. Its purpose is to constitute a strong defense of the domains of the Rossi, which branched out to the Apennines and, in the plains, to Roccabianca. With the growth of the power and importance of the family, which is related to the Sforza, the Gonzagas, the Medici, families from which it will receive aid and protection against opponents, the castle is gradually transformed into a sumptuous residence thanks to artistic interventions which follow one another above all starting from the sixteenth century.
- Fortress of Soragna (TO Soragna). In 1385 the Marquises Bonifacio and Antonio Lupi began the construction of the mighty fortress, conceived as a defense tool. Towards the sixteenth century, structural changes began to be made to make the building less military and more residential. The interventions that made the fortress a sumptuous princely residence, however, date back to the seventeenth century, when the castle took on its current appearance.
With a square plan, it has four corner towers and a fifth of access through a bridge that replaced the ancient drawbridge; two stone lions guard the entrance. On two sides of the castle there is still a moat (without water). Its rooms retain the original furniture and furnishings, commissioned and executed in Venice, including gilding. The whole constitutes one of the greatest examples of the early Baroque of sumptuous elegance. However, there are also rooms that offer different styles of furniture, derived from Parma or Lombardy.
Environment
- 1 Parma Morta nature reserve (to Mezzani). It is a protected natural area ofEmilia Romagna located in the municipality of Mezzani, established in 1990. The reserve is entirely included in the site of community interest Parma Morta (IT4020025), of which it represents one tenth of the surface. It extends for 64.51 hectares between the mouths of the Parma and Enza streams and includes a flat territory almost 5 km long along a humid area called Parma morta. To guarantee the area a constant level of water, necessary for maintaining the ecosystem, a phytodepuration plant was created which ensures a constant water flow from the surrounding reclamation channels; the area is favorable for the protection of local species of fauna and flora ..
What to do
There are many food excellences in the Parma area, starting with Parmesan Cheese, a cheese that has a large production area in these lands and is so highly regarded that the Parmigiano-Reggiano Museum. In terms of fame, the raw ham of Parma, which with cooked ham finds its capital in Langhirano and is produced and matured not only in Val Parma but also in many other areas of the territory; the culatello of Zibello; there cooked shoulder of San Secondo, the salami of Feline. Langhirano and Felino have consecrated theirs artwork respectively in Ham Museum is in the Salami Museum. Accompaniment not to be missed with local cured meats is the fried pie, bread dough fried in abundant lard and eaten hot with salami instead of bread: all washed down with lambrusco, fortana or malvasia.
Among the stuffed pasta: the tortelli with herbs, the cappelletti, the tortellini. Among the second courses, boiled meats, tripe. In extensive rural areas, scratching poultry animals abound. River fish in the plains also enjoy great acclaim, together with floured frogs fried or cooked in omelettes.
Homemade liqueurs help digestion: centerbe, nocino, bargnolino.
Safety
Other projects
Wikipedia contains an entry concerning Parma lowland
