Placed where stream Telva flows into the Isarco river and this latter into the Adige one, Bolzano/Bozen, chief town of Alto Adige, has been an important commercial centre since the Middle Ages. Historical documents quote the name of Castrum Bauzanum in the XVII century A.D., but the first settlement is dated back to the I century B.C. During the passing of time, the town went over many governments, from Trent bishops to the Counts of Tyrol, till the XIV century when it went over the dukes of Austria and then over the Habsbourgs. In that period Bolzano had an important development especially in trades and commerce. Only after the the First World War, the city and its outskirts finally belonged to Italy.
This mix of dominations and cultures can be seen, throughout its evidence, walking along the streets of the town centre, the gourmets' alleys, the elegant porticos and the colourful market in Piazza delle Erbe, and again in the many fairs, such as the Autumn one, the Hotel Fair, the Time Fair, the Antiques Fair and the many markets of the town. All these are the points of reference of a town that in the trades has its centuries-old tradition and where North and South meets creating a unique atmosphere. So, walking on the streets, it will not be difficult to see Sicily oranges, Salerno artichokes, Sardinian pepper cheese, Friuli ham, Verona peaches beside Naz Sciavez cauliflowers, Val Sarentina speck and Nova Ponente cheese.
Bolzano is much more than a trade or industrial town. It is worth a visit to Piazza Walther, the "salon" of the town, in any season, and have a look at the Catinaccio massif, the reign of the mythical King Laurino, and to the gothic Cathedral.
Moreover, with three different lifts, it is possible to leave Bolzano and, in few minutes, get to the 1000 m of Renon/Ritten, with its earth pyramids, to San Genesio, or to Colle where you can have a look of the whole wonderful valley of Bolzano.
On one of the portals of the cathedral, carved into the stone, there are the grape-pickers and some vineyards. All that would underline that in the area vine has always been grown.
Indeed, few kilometres far from the chief town, you enter the Garden of South Tyrol.
In the southern part of South Tyrol, all business is made in front of a good glass of wine. So it was during Goethe' s period, then in the 60ies, when the Wine Route was built, and so it is still today. The localities in this area are quite close each other and they are all characterized by a country culture voted, first of all, to the growth of vine. The little hamlets surprise for their typical architectonic style, called "Oltradige", with the doors and windows jambs in stone or marble, the stylised portals, the Tuscan windows, the outside stairs, the open galleries, the little towers and the inside courtyards.
The Wine Route, i.e. the Route 14, starts in Lana, but its centre is in the Oltradige and Lower Adige Valley territory. In this area people speak a particular lingua franca, which is a mix of Italian and German. Along this route, in the area that the lovers of good wine have called the Land of Plenty, there are centres such as Appiano/Eppan, Caldaro/Kaltern, Termeno/Tramin, Egna/Neumarkt, Ora/Auer, all surrounded by luxuriant vineyards. The same vineyards were the finest Alto Adige wines are produced.
