The autonomous region Trentino-Alto Adige consists of two provincies. Trentino to the south and Alto Adige to the north towards Austria. Trentino is italian by culture and language and Alto Adige is german/austrian (South Tyrol). Rovereto where I live is the second largest city in Trentino and has around 35000 inhabitants. It is the main town in the "Vallagarina" area, which is the valley south of Trento (the Regional capital) along the Adige river. Rovereto is well known for the "Campana dei caduti" (the biggest ringing bell in the world), the memorial bell for the fallen of all wars, commemorating the bloody battles around Rovereto during the 1. World War. The bones of many of these soldiers are now kept at a memorial site ("il Ossario") on the mountain side above Rovereto.

Well known is also the Castle of Rovereto, build by the Venetians in the fifteenth century, on a place that controls 3 valleys. The castle were one of the firsts in Italy to be constructed to resist the revolutionary invention of firearms. Today the castle houses one of the finest war museums in Italy.

Trentino is in fact famous for its many castles but also for its wines. The "Marzemino" wine from Vallagarina was a prized wine at the Habsburg Imperial Court and Mozart mentioned it in "Don Giovanni". Regarding the Marzemino of today I can highly recommend the one from Cantina Sociale di Isera, a splendid everyday-wine.

Rovereto, was also the hometown of the italian futurist artist Fortunato Depero.

Many people come to Trentino as turists, either at wintertime to ski, or during the summer to bathe or surf at the Lake of Garda or to go hiking in the mountains. In Trentino we have The Dolomites and they are really worth a visit !!!

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