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Area: 23.861 km2 Population: 9.080.242 (2001) Regional Capital: Milan Located in northern Italy, Lombardy is surrounded on the west by Piedmont, in the north by Switzerland, in the east by Trentino Alto Adige and Veneto, on the south by Emilia Romagna. Places to see - Things to do: - the Lake Maggiore: Angera, Santa Caterina del Sasso, Laveno - the Lake Como: Bellagio, Cernobbio, Villa Carlotta in Tremezzo, Como city of silk - the Lake Garda: Desenzano del Garda, Gardone Riviera, Limone sul Garda, Salò, Sirmione... - Milan, Bergamo, Brescia, the Charterhouse in Pavia, Cremona famous for its violins, Mantua, Monza and the Formula 1, Vigevano... Gastronomy: -non exhaustive list- pasta (Casoncelli alla bergamasca, pizzocheri della Valtellina, tortelli di zucca...), Milanese risotto, rice 'alla Pilotta', polenta ; Milanese veal chop, ossobuco ; meats (bresaola, ciccioli, Cotechino, greppole...) ; cheese (Grana Padano, Gorgonzola, Mascarpone, Provolone, Quartirolo, Robiola, stracchino, taleggio...), biscuits and desserts ('brutti e buoni' of Varese, panettone, sbrisolona mantovana, Pavia's torta paradiso...) ; wine (Franciacorta, Garda, Lambrusco Mantovano, Lugana, Oltrepò pavese, Sabbioneta, Valtellina Superiore... )... Festivities & Events: -non exhaustive list- January / February ¤ Monday and Shrove Tuesday, Carnival 'Bagoss' to Bagolino. May ¤ 1 ° fortnight, medieval feast in Cusago: district palio, typical products selling market ¤ 29 (celebrated the previous or next Sunday), the anniversary of the Battle of Curtatone and Montanara in Grazie di Curtatone: period costumes evocation ¤ end of the month, 'festa dei Navigli' in Milan: festival along the canals of the district: Milan folklore, music, stands of typical products, fireworks, sports competitions on the water ... August ¤ 2 ° fortnight, medieval festival in Belgioiso: medieval performances, thematic market. September ¤ 2 ° Sunday, 'Palio Gonzaghesco' in Isola Dovarese: evocation of the luxurious life at the Gonzaga court. ¤ last Sunday, 'Palio dell'Oca' in Mortara: the 7 districts challenge in some kind of a Snake and Ladders with human pawns ; historical parade in period costume from the fifteenth century, flag-wavers, folk groups, gastronomic stands... Native People: -non exhaustive list- B. Antonacci, singer ; G. Arcimboldi, painter ; A. Celentano, singer song-writer ; L. Il Moro, Duke of Bari and then Milan ; A. Manzoni, writer ; A. Stradivari, violin maker ; U. Tognazzi, actor ; L. Visconti, director ; A. Volta, inventor of the battery...
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