ISOLA MADRE
Elegant house with paintings, pictures and a puppet theater.
Extreme refinement characterizes the largest, but at the same time most intimate, of the Borromean Islands. An 8-hectare park dotted with rare species surrounds the Palazzo. This elegant residence, which rises on the south side of the island on its highest point, became the personal residence of the Borromeo family in the 16th century. Master paintings, pictures and tapestries fill the rooms, but the most curious pieces are the puppet theatre sets from the 18th and 19th centuries. It's fun to watch the puppets dressed as characters from the Commedia dell'Arte, as imps or princes of the Thousand and One Nights. The most amazing thing is the series of special effects planned for the shows: fire, smoke, light show!
The botanical garden is one of the oldest and richest in Italy. From the bare rock that was the island in the beginning, this place became first an orchard, then an orange grove, in the 15th century. Count Giberto Borromeo and his son Vitaliano transformed it at the beginning of the 19th century into a marvellous English-style park. Plants from Australia, Tibet, Peru and Chile grow here thanks to the microclimate. A 25-metre-high Kashmir cypress, which a storm failed to uproot in 2006, stands in front of the palace; today, a system of cables and pylons anchors this 150-year-old tree, unique in Europe, firmly to the ground. And amidst the tropical plants, hens, wild pheasants, colourful parrots and blue and white peacocks are strolling around, accentuating the change of scenery of this enchanting garden.
La balade peut facilement durer tout l'après-midi : essences variées, plantes splendides et paons blancs en liberté, c'est un ravissement.
Le café qui surplombe le lac est agréable pour finir la journée en admirant le paysage.