The 5 Best Things to do Good for a Rainy Day in Sotto il Monte Giovanni XXIII, Lombardy

Reviewed By Tualie - Varese, Italy

This site has almost a thousand years saga. In Romanesque style, built and ran under Cluniac order as a priory from XI to XIV centuries, poorly administrated in addition to the wars between the guelphs and ghibellines, nearly abandoned and demolished, the priory declined to the more important Pontida… Pope Sixtus IV (patron of arts and letters, best known as the builder of the Sistine Chapel) took control annexing it under St. Mark’s Basilica of Venice reducing as parish then passed under different dioceses and deaneries throughout the centuries… Future Pope John XXIII took particular interest to repair this church as he was born and spent his childhood in this area until the 60’s when a priest started a hospitality community for believers and non, now a clergy house. Apart the beauty of the old church with Medieval frescoes, there are a couple of sarcophagus; one of probably Lombard origin and the other of Teutberga who nobody knows exactly who and how she was related (not the Carolingian queen) . Nice to spend an hour visiting the structure with a cute bookstore and clean toilets; there is also an apartment to rent in the cloister, looks nice and comfy, great for quiet holidays (easy to find through a well-known lodging reservations site).