Province VC
Vercelli, VC
A city of about 46,000 in the middle of Europe's largest rice-growing district, on the Sesia between Milan and Turin. It has one outstanding early Gothic church and a cathedral library holding the Vercelli Book, a 10th-century Old English manuscript.
Sights
- Basilica di Sant'Andrea, begun in 1219, an unusually complete and early example of Gothic arriving in Italy
- Duomo di Sant'Eusebio, whose chapter library holds the Vercelli Book, containing The Dream of the Rood
- Museo Borgogna, the most important picture gallery in the region after Turin's
- Museo Leone, archaeology and applied arts in a merchant's house and a Renaissance palazzo
- Torre dell'Angelo, the medieval tower over the old market square
Things to do
- Eat panissa, the local rice and bean dish with salami
- Cycle or drive among the paddies when they are flooded, roughly April to June, when the fields mirror the sky and the Alps
- See the Sant'Andrea cloister, calmer than the church interior
Annual events
September
Riso, Festival Internazionale del Riso
Three days of talks, tours of rice estates and workshops, with rice cooking and tastings in the centre.
When to visit
Late April to June, when the paddies are under water, or September for Riso.
