Bolzano

For me, Bolzano is a mountain transformed into a city. The moment you move, it changes appearance. You edge forward and the profile is different, you go back and discover new faces. It speaks different languages. At its heart, it is an actor, enchanting and contradictory, haughty an alluring, warm hearted and chilly." R. Messner

At the Crossroads of Culture
Bolzano, the only city in the world with both a competition in honour of F. Busoni and a house where Mozart slept. An elegant salon where different people meet, an exchange of cultures, music, and performances.
The central Piazza Walther named for the troubadour Walther von der Vogelweide, one street named for Dante and another for Goethe; a conservatory carrying the name of Monteverdi an Orchestra of Haydn. A trilingual University, and an Academy of Design and a Film School both bilingual. This is what makes Bolzano a little big capital of European atmosphere!

The Gateway to the Dolomites
Bolzano lies 265 m above sea level along one of the most important routes running from the Mediterranean to the North Sea, conecting North and South. It is surrounded on all sides by mountains. Above the city, in the Dolomites, lies the"Rosengarten"- the legendary realm of Laurin, the dwarf king. His enchanted garden glows an unearthly red at twilight.

Bolzano is the portal to a world without borders, from the green of parks and grapevines to the living rock of the Dolomites. Pink mountains fringed with snow form a backdrop while below lie palms, olive trees, cedars, and magnolias on the slopes of the hills. An elegant frame for the meeting between the fresh northern wind and the radiant Mediterranean sun, a benediction for vines sagging with the weight of bountiful bunches, filled with the flavours of days gone by.

The Countryside in the city
There are over 300 hectares (740acres) of grapevines within the city limits, a full one seventh of the total area. In the fall, the aroma of freshly crushed grapes wafts through the city from its 27 wineries.