Most of us still place it as Milan-Bergamo after its airport (actually it’s Il Caravaggio Orio al Serio International Airport), and this year we saw it as the Covid-19 gateway to Europe.
The pandemic hit Lombardy hard and early; the world watching in horror as its grip fastened last February and March – a preview of things to come.
Stay strong
It was a surreal light to shine on Bergamo, a medieval city in the Alpine foothills.
Suddenly portrayed not as a bustling cultural and historical hub, but through rolling television coverage.
Of empty cobbled streets, eerie churches and boarded shutters.
Medieval Bergamo
A sweeping landscape
Bergamo boasts rich galleries with works by Titian, Botticelli and Canaletto.
We know its Champions League football team, Atalanta.
It celebrates composer Gaetano Donizetti in its annual international opera festival.
And it has architectural dedications to revolutionary Giuseppe Garibaldi.
The cobbled stones of the old city
Bergamo is known as the Citta dei Mille after 1,000 of its citizens marched on Rome and helped unify Italy in the 19th century.
This year, tourists vanished and a different type of visitor descended.
International news teams flocking to the Papa Giovanni XXIII Hospital, named for another famous son.
Snapshot of Bergamo in the pandemic
But there is light at the end of the tunnel, as many of those who travelled to report on distress, only to find success, have discovered.
As Christophe Sanchez, CEO of Visit Bergamo, said: “Because of the situation we have been through, Bergamo is now the safest town in Europe.”
Visitors it is true, have not always been kind to Bergamo.
But Bergamo is kind to its visitors, particularly those who stay a while.
Owed to Autumn
The Autumn poplar trees
Visiting this autumn, I found the streets, which were desolate in March when everyone was locked away behind their shutters, alive again six months later.
Citizens mingled, talking at breakneck speed behind their masks and, of course, con le mani (with their hands).
Ice cream heaven
They spoke, of course, of the second wave that has now come to pass, and the closure of restaurants, cafes, shops and museums. But also calcio e cibo… football and food.
And whatever it is that a gathering of young Bergamaschi always chat about in loud decibels outside your hotel bedroom window at midnight.
My visit gave me a glimpse into the everyday life of the Bergamaschi – not as victims, although there have been far too many of them, but survivors.
A picture of our times
The testing centre
An exhibition of photographs in the piazza captured the past year.
A masked priest administered Mass; doctors and nurses cared for the sick and dying, and a father cradled his new-born son.
But the Bergamaschi, queuing at the open-air testing centre, knew that the worst had passed and what they were now having to endure is temporary.
They had been here before and prevailed – with a little help from God.
Bergamo is split into old and new towns, Citta Alta (high town) and Citta Bassa (low town).
The best way to reach the walled and cobbled Citta Alta is by funicular.
It takes you into the centre of things, Piazza Mercato delle Scarpe (market of the shoes), and to that staple of any old Italian town, an Irish pub, Tucans.
Take me to Church
Stories for the Masses
For the real beating heart of Bergamo, though, I went to Piazza del Duomo – which houses Bergamo Cathedral and the Basilica Papale di Santa Maria Maggiore.
Here, the Bergamaschi congregation of old could follow redemptive tales of the parting of the Red Sea, David and Goliath and Noah and the Deluge on wooden engravings.
Forza Atalanta
Deliverance was as much a part of Medieval life as it had been in Biblical times.
And when Our Lady finally spared the Bergamaschi any more suffering from the Plague in the 12th century they built this basilica to her.
Of course, all of this speaks to us in 2020 louder than ever.
Good neighbours
They’ll make a statue of me
Matteo, my Visit Bergamo guide, recalled the only sounds back in March when the city was in quarantine – the sirens of ambulances and the whirring of helicopters.
He told me of a citizen stuck in his house with his Covid-hit ageing father, unable to get help.
When he saw a report of a man who had died in the nearby town of Brescia, leaving behind a half-tank of unused oxygen.
He made his way to Brescia, found the house, asked and was given the tank, although, alas, he could not save his father.
Everything in the garden is getting rosier again
Every Bergamasque has a story of loss and suffering but for Matteo, the best response is a return to the life they know and love.
For Italians that means their famous five-course meals.
Food for thought
And there are lots more courses to come
The centrepiece of which at the Trattoria Sant’Ambroeus in Citta Alta is their special ravioli, casoncelli dei sant ambroeus.
Stuffed pasta with sausage, breadcrumbs, parsley, eggs and garlic and cheese…
All washed down with the best Valcalepio rosso Riserva doc Tenuta Castello di Grumello del Monte.
I sauntered to the city walls and La Marianna for their signature milky scoop of ice cream heaven, stracciatella.
Plenty polenta
And, of course, for Lombardy that was only lunch. Dinner in the roof garden of the plush Excelsior San Marco Hotel in Citta Bassa brought five more courses.
In future, those bustling crowds will return.
But that night, the restaurant was an encouraging two-thirds occupancy with social distancing in place.
And even a puppy at the next table enjoyed himself and heeded the rules.
Bergamo currently sits in the yellow zone, the lowest of the three tiers Italy has been applying since early November.
This means restaurants and bars open till 6pm, shops are open, ski resorts / pools / gym / museums closed, people can move freely. The other zones are red (strictest) and orange (medium).
Travel into Bergamo
involves providing the results of a negative Covid test taken within 72 hours of arrival.
Or you can get an airport test on arrival and quarantine for 48 hours while waiting for the results.
Any travellers will currently need to self-isolate on return..
I am particularly taken by the magical properties of the cocoa plant.
And by another called ‘roucou’ or achiote (Bixa orellana) which contains a dye which will turn your beard ginger (I bet Crusoe did the same).
Plus a plant that cures the flu.
In February, Tobagonians come out for carnival, the Caribbean’s oldest of its type, dating back to the slave trade era.
During which they go limin’ (pre-drinking), and chippin’ (a rhythmic sliding strut performed by revellers as they follow a band).
They practise for it all year round.
Every visitor to Tobago should make time to stop at Sunday School in Bucoo on the south of the island.
Not a true Sunday school, but a vibrant street party featuring steelpan and soca (soul of calypso) music.
For which the whole of the island comes out to dance and drink rum punch into the wee small hours.
Soca star
Soca, the soundtrack to Tobago, comes in many guises – from old-school kaiso (west African-influenced)…
To power Soca (fast-paced) and the Christmas favourite Parang, heavily influenced by nearby Venezuela.
Waterholics, a local water activities company, brings tourists by boat to Princess Margaret’s honeymoon spot, Nylon Pool.
Which she once declared were as clear as her nylon stockings (€109pp ilovetobagott.com)
Nylon Pool has the added advantage of being a raised sandbank amid deeper water, so you can have a bit of fun.
Standing around in the sea fir afternoon drinks, and I guess this is exactly what the party-loving royal did.
Christmas party
Amid Tobago’s 30C temperatures don’t be surprised to find a Santa in a festive T-shirt on the beach, and a No Man’s Land…
A small, sandy island which my boat party drops anchor on for our own bespoke Christmas party.
I suspend disbelief and indulge in rum punch instead of a sherry and mahi-mahi (like swordfish) instead of turkey.
Perhaps Tobago’s biggest distraction comes in the form of racing goats, who during my visit are in training for the Buccoo Goat Race Festival that takes place each Easter.
The ways of a nanny or billy goat were well known to Crusoe, of course, whose efforts in raising the big kids were chronicled in his adventures.
In Crusoe’s absence, though, we are fortunate to have jockey Levi, who shows me the ropes, and how to handle my giddy goat Bandanaman.
Which has a loose-fitting cord around its neck.
The starter shouts: ‘Ready, Steady. Goat’, or at least I do, and we’re pff.
I’m a natural, letting Bandanaman lead me 100 metres up the grass track near the football pitch.
Which just happens to be the hallowed ground upon which former Manchester United striker Dwight Yorke first paraded his skills.
Today, though, it is Yorke’s former mentor Terry Williams holding the fort, flying kites with his young son Elijah.
Lie down and think of Tobago
It looks hard work in this heat, but after my exertions with the goats, I welcome the prospect of a cool down.
On an island where all beaches are public, you are spoilt for choice – from Lover’s Bay and Pirate’s Bay, to Crown Point’s Store Bay Beach.
Where the Trinis (Trinidadians) will pop over on a 20-minute flight, just for the afternoon.
It is on Pirate’s Bay beach that I meet a German party, who emerge, almost Crusoelike from the thickets, having walked the width of the island.
From Scarborough, its largest town.
A kindlier man might have given up their hammock but I have difficulty in getting out of mine.
My last day I spend as Crusoe might have done, in reverence to the Divine Creator – partaking of a full-throated spiritual singalong at the Bread of Life Ministries.
Which is a Pentecostal church near my hotel in Crown Point.
But while Crusoe’s most solemn wish would have been to be rescued, mine is that no big bird ever arrives to fly me off my fantasy island.
The brief
Getting there:
Fly from Dublin to London Gatwick and onwards to Tobago with British Airways (from €560 return www.ba.com) or Virgin Atlantic (from €586 return) www.virginatlantic.com.
Getting around:
Drivers and guides can easily be arranged at hotels to get you around Tobago. Car rental starts at about €50 per day.
Where to eat:
Mount Irvine Bay Resort has its own seaside golf course while for those whose favourite hole is the 19th, the resort serves the best rum punches on the island (doubles from €84 www.mtirvine.com.
Castara Retreats is a hidden gem with its hammocks on the balcony, buzzing village feel and bonfire parties on the beach (doubles from €777) www.castararetreats.com.
Kariwak Holistic Haven is near the airport, the bars, restaurants and casino of the ‘strip’ (doubles from €263. www.kariwak.com.
Where to dine:
The Blue Crab is Robinson, Scarborough, once featured on television chef Ainslie Harriott’s show, Caribbean Kitchen. Try the chicken curry www.tobagobluecrab.com.
Jemma’s Tree House on Fourmi Road, Hermitage, where you’ll share your table space with hummingbirds but that’s what comes when you dine in a treehouse.
Order the swordfish – so good they named it twice.
And this torturous pun is to entice you into the latest from Wendy Wu for 2021 with, eh, Cornish scones, jam and clotted cream.
No me either, but I’ll never turn my nose up at what Wendy and the gang send, with their Chinese New Year lunch in Dublin the stuff of legend.
So before we savour what Wendy Wu Tours have to offer in Asia, which will be the go-to destination in 2021, let’s try and explain Cornish scones.
Because this is a thing, with the English West Country counties of Cornwall and Devon taking very different stances on how they spread jam and cream on a scone.
Devon: The Devonians, in contrast, go the other way, cream on the bottom with a topping of cream.
Me, I don’t take cream, which meant more for the Scary One and Daddy’s Little Girl.
Twenty-Wendy One
A golden sun over Asia
But I digress, Wendy Wu Tours held a webinar today and showed again why they are the cream of the crop when it comes to Asian travel.
Wendy is all about the giving and to mark 26 years in business, which isn’t even a special milestone although still, kudos, she has this for us, her friends she invited here.
Free return flights on 26 of their best tours worldwide for 2021 and 2022 which will give you savings of £800.
And yesterday the Veneto region laid out everybody’s favourite dinner party dessert for us.
On Zoom (because we didn’t have smellavision).
Tiramisu it transpires has been with us for rather less time than I had thought.
Being served up for the first time at the end of the Sixties.
By chef Roberto Linguanotto at Le Beccherie in Treviso on Christmas Eve.
Whose Tiramisu is it anyway?
And I wasn’t going to be the one to raise with the good people of the Veneto region that our Zoom hosts for the previous day Friuli Venezia Giulia had a claim.
From the Vetturino restaurant in Pieris from 1938.
Anyhoos, as they never say in Northern Italy, tiramisu is celebrated all the world over.
And it’s not just between the regions that it gets competitive with some believing it goes back way further than that to Siena in honour of Grand Duke Cosimo III.
Fabio generously treated us all to his creation on our meeting.
Unfortunately though we could not reach into the screen and taste.
Prosecco, another Veneto favourite was.
Just the ‘pick me up’ as Tiramisu means in Italiano for someone who has just broken his fingertips.
You want to make your own, then my go-to baking site is BBC Good Food. Who am I kidding she’s in the kitchen!
Venice is, of course, the jewel of the Veneto region but in truth it is just the most glittering in a crown that is embedded with other gems I’ve found such as Padova.
While Treviso, Verona and Venice’s piccolo fratello Choggia should all be explored.
Time to say goodbye, Paesi che non ho mai, veduto e vissuto con te, Adesso si, il vivro, con te partiro, su navi per mari che, io lo so, no, no, non esistono piu, it’s time to say goodbye. – Andrea Boccelli
Una ciocolatta di caldo densa at Balzer in Bergamo
Ciao Bergamo e grazie mille. Molamia, miei amici, stay strong my friends.
It’s time to say goodbye, although on my terms and not Signore Johnson’s.
I have made it my mission to come to Bergamo since the start of the outbreak to find out why the pandemic came here first.
What it was like for the Bergamoschi to live through.
And something a little stronger
And how they are living today and how they see tomorrow.
Peace to Bergamo
The overriding feeling I have found is one of peace (except for the raucous ragazzi e ragazze outside my window at midnight although this is how the young should be.)
I spend my last afternoon reading the stories on the picture boards in the piazza they are using as a testing centre.
And, of course, nothing tells a story quite like a picture, or a photograph.
Mars, Venus and love in Accademia Carrera
I wish mia moglie, the long insufferable (sorry, suffering) Mrs M was here to put her award-winning photo skills to work.
A work of art
I have come too from the Academia Carrera where I have been enjoying Titian, Canaletto and trying out Lotto (no, not the lottery, but the artist.
I have just enough time to treat myself to my Italian guilt pleasure, una ciocolatta di calda densa, a hot chocolate that wants to be a dessert.
What’s Italian for phew’ I’ve been walked off my piedi today in Bergamo Citt’alta e Citta Bassa (City High and City Low).
And phew too… Johnson, Schnapps and Co. are too late to quarantine me on my return. I was always flying back tomorrow evening anyway, so Sunday is troppo tardi, idioti!
David and Goliath: The Basilica
That’s if I don’t decide to quarantine myself anyway with the Bergamoschi (the people that is, not the local sheepdogs who share their name. Although…!)
La Prima Citta
Bergamo, as we all know by now, is where Covid-19 entered Europe.
To the greater glory of God
But they have taken the worst it can offer and are coming out the other side, and will prevail.
Or as they say here ‘Molamia’ (stay strong).
Chin-Chin
The Bergamoschi have done just that since Covid visited in March and shut the town off from the rest of Lombardy, Italy, and the world for four months.
To the greater glory of beer: With Matteo
But not from each other… or not in the ways that matter.
Matteo, my tour guide volunteered to help out the old and infirm.
Restaurateur Niccolo the same with his original ice cream and food.
Stay strong: The Bergamo credo
And model citizen Emmanuele, who lives in a palazzo on the hill too, as a volunteer.
All are heroes… and all Bergamoschi are an example to us all
La Storia
Perhaps it is in the blood. It is certainly in their history.
I am standing in the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore in Ciitt’alta.
The Bergamo bear: With Matteo and Atalanta Bear
Where the Bergamoschi built a new church after they were delivered from the plague in the 12th century.
And filled it with frescoes, magnificent paintings and special picture boards of other scenes where humanity prevailed over adversity.
Noah anyone?
Pasta Basta
Ma mi scusi. I have just eaten my own weight in food and drunk today, a small lago di vino and must now repair to my bed in the Hotel Excelsior San Marco.
I scream for ice cream: With Niccolo
A Domani.
And if you want to slip on the Italian Boot to follow in my footsteps, here’s my Via Francigena, into Rome
While as the Veneto region is just over the horizon to the east, here’s the City of Frescoes Padova.
Bergamo Molamia: Stay strong
Una ciocolatta di calda densa: In Bergamo
