Orta San Giulio in Autumn

On the eastern shore of Lago d’Orta, lies the village of Orta San Giulio which lies below the Franciscan church, the Sacre Monte di Orta. The following pictures are from a short visit to this village during autumn, 2012.

First, the view from the Sacre Monte down to the lake, with Isola San Giulio clearly visible to the right. The village itself, is on the right side, down the hill.

Wandering down the path to the village, the autumn colours seem to not only colour the trees, but cast their own light hues on the stonework of the buildings, their walls, and roofs.

This is some beautiful iron work, in a small courtyard just off one of the main streets. The streets themselves are quite narrow, and while there are few cars, one is mainly walking around a quiet village in the true sense of the word. There is something about the presence of cars that not only adds a certain background noise, but also a seemingly unavoidable sensation of having to get somewhere “else”. Its not that I mind cars, but they do tend to dominate our architecture, our town planning and I wonder if that is completely necessary. There is something deeply refreshing about leaving your car on the edge of town (which you do here) and have to walk into an area designed for i piede.

On the lake’s edge, house, town-houses, hotels, mansions, with views and gardens of delight

Heading back up to the top of the Monte, you walk up this path, with benches lining the walls of the church complex. A fine spot for contemplation on a day such as this.