Eugi Gufo's siteEugi Gufo

I do not know why, but in my mind the cities of Crema and Cremona have always existed as complementary copies of one another. I had been to Cremona in March 2011, while my exploration of Crema took place only at the beginning of December of the same year. Now I know that they are two very different cities.

The first difference is noticeable already upon arrival: while still on the train, it is almost impossible to understand which stop it is. So if you go there, be careful to count the stops. The station is very small and has only three platforms, all of them scarcely used. In fact, only trains to Treviglio and Cremona pass through and stop in Crema.

The first building spotted when exiting the station made me reflect not only on its practical usefulness, but also on what the city itself might offer to an explorer.

To reach the centre one has to cross a park that further reinforces the worst premonitions. Is it the fault of its autumnal appearance?

Along the main street (which runs through the entire city), at a distance of about one kilometre from each other, there are two arches…

I was unable to discover their symbolic meaning. They probably mark the boundaries of the historic centre.

The historic centre looks pleasant, well preserved, full of tidy and well-frequented shops.

But in reality it is possible to walk around it entirely in half an hour. This, for example, is a photograph of three quarters of the main square, the one with the cathedral.

As happens in most Italian cities, the most beautiful and interesting buildings cannot be seen from the inside.

It is said that the medieval city walls are very well preserved. Unfortunately, I was unable to verify this up close: they are surrounded by modern apartment blocks and villas.

Some of the old buildings are preserved so well that they look fake. Or are they fake? Well, in any case, next to this example of dubious quality we find an aesthetically beautiful sign. It is difficult to find pedestrians drawn so well; so far I have seen a similar sign (though not identical) only in Gardone Riviera on Lake Garda.

To compensate for the presumed architectural falsities, a futuristic building has been constructed in Crema: in my opinion it is the only structure in the city that deserves the title of tourist attraction.

Despite Crema being a small town, it has its own world record: more kilometres of shop runners per inhabitant than any other place. In fact, most shops in Crema lay them out along their shop windows.

In the outskirts, minimalist street lamps and numerous surveillance cameras have been installed.

In the city centre, video surveillance did not seem excessive to me, but some locals do not agree.

An undoubtedly positive feature of Crema is the presence of cycle lanes along almost all the streets of the city. A negative feature, however, is the sharing of space between pedestrians and cyclists. In practice, when walking along any pavement you must always be careful not to be run over by a cyclist (who may arrive at high speed even from behind).

This is the first time I have seen a traffic light of this kind in Italy. It was suspended above the centre of a junction and had four lights. It was flashing yellow.

Someone advises men, as a joke of dubious quality, not to pick up coins fallen on the street. Following the same logic, one could say that it is dangerous to collect tickets at stadium ticket offices like the one in Crema.

Speaking of football in Crema: the local team plays in the Eccellenza league and has a rather strange training ground. It is strange because it is surrounded by a fake stand, that is, a concrete wall inclined at 60 degrees. I cannot imagine the reason for this construction.

But let us return to matters more important to ordinary mortals. Benches are not very common in the city and they are all of different types. There are three types of litter bins; the most widespread (and the most attractive) can be seen in the following photo. The parking meters have nothing particularly noteworthy.

In the historic centre, flat litter bins are also very common, similar to those already seen in Cinisello Balsamo, near Milan.

And then there are litter bins very similar to those in Cremona, but with unsuitable containers inside.

It is the first time, however, that I have seen benches divided into single armchairs. After the previously mentioned traffic light, this is the nicest thing in the city.

Even the benches with tables are aesthetically pleasing. So pleasing that they deserve to serve a better city.

I do not know what the bunches of straw tied with blue and pink ribbons and hung on the doors and/or windows of some villas symbolise. They seemed a bit too many even to celebrate a baby boom… Anyone who knows what they are, please tell me.

In summary, I can say that Crema is a boring and useless city, just like this sign warning about the possible fall of human bodies downwards:

Maybe I am wrong. Or perhaps they deliberately hid all the interesting things for the duration of my visit.