{"id":655,"date":"2026-02-12T11:37:28","date_gmt":"2026-02-12T11:37:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/en\/?page_id=655"},"modified":"2026-02-12T11:37:29","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T11:37:29","slug":"broni2012","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/en\/travel\/broni2012\/","title":{"rendered":"Broni, 7 December 2012"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The decision to&nbsp;visit a&nbsp;small town brings several advantages for an&nbsp;explorer. For instance, it&nbsp;is&nbsp;possible to&nbsp;see more than one in&nbsp;the course of&nbsp;the same day and therefore gain a&nbsp;better understanding of&nbsp;the characteristics of&nbsp;an&nbsp;area larger than a&nbsp;single city. That is&nbsp;exactly what&nbsp;I did on&nbsp;7&nbsp;December 2012, visiting Stradella and the nearby town of&nbsp;Broni. It&nbsp;is&nbsp;the latter that I&nbsp;am writing about now.<br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka1\"><\/a>As&nbsp;soon as I&nbsp;got off the train, I&nbsp;was struck by&nbsp;the railway station, which still preserves a&nbsp;1970s style (or&nbsp;perhaps even older?).<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni01.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"at the railway station of Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka2\"><\/a>For a&nbsp;town of&nbsp;that size (just 9,500&nbsp;inhabitants), Broni&rsquo;s historic centre could be&nbsp;described as&nbsp;large, almost disproportionate in&nbsp;relation to&nbsp;the rest of&nbsp;the town. In&nbsp;places it&nbsp;is&nbsp;beautiful and well maintained; in&nbsp;others it&nbsp;appears run-down but is&nbsp;still attractive. I&nbsp;must admit that&nbsp;I did not find the same level of&nbsp;decay as&nbsp;in&nbsp;nearby Stradella.<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni02.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"the old town of Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka3\"><\/a>The following photograph shows one of&nbsp;the very few possible ways of&nbsp;framing the entire Basilica Maggiore from the street. Only while preparing this report did&nbsp;I discover that&nbsp;I had taken a&nbsp;photograph almost identical to&nbsp;the one on&nbsp;Wikipedia (which&nbsp;I never consult before a&nbsp;particular trip).<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni03.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"Basilica Maggiore in Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka4\"><\/a>The interior of&nbsp;the Basilica is&nbsp;so&nbsp;beautiful that I&nbsp;would describe it&nbsp;as&nbsp;the only truly worthwhile attraction for a&nbsp;traditional tourist. But&nbsp;I, as&nbsp;you already know, almost never publish tourist photos. Moreover, a&nbsp;funeral was about to&nbsp;begin, so&nbsp;I was in&nbsp;something of&nbsp;a&nbsp;hurry. I&nbsp;will show you just a&nbsp;small part of&nbsp;the beautiful nativity scene. I&nbsp;hope they set it&nbsp;up&nbsp;every year: that way&nbsp;I can recommend it&nbsp;to&nbsp;everyone.<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni04.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"the nativity scene in the Basilica Maggiore in Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka5\"><\/a>In&nbsp;the town centre there is&nbsp;another equally typical sight to&nbsp;be&nbsp;seen: a&nbsp;saint protecting the shop of&nbsp;the local agricultural company.<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni05.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka6\"><\/a>But citizens, believers and non-believers alike, are equal in&nbsp;front of&nbsp;the doors of&nbsp;the town hall, with inscriptions such as&nbsp;these:<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni06.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka7\"><\/a>Since we&nbsp;have touched on&nbsp;the subject of&nbsp;signs, I&nbsp;must confess something peculiar: this is&nbsp;the first time&nbsp;I have encountered the word &laquo;zonale&raquo;. Or&nbsp;perhaps it&nbsp;is&nbsp;simply the first time&nbsp;I have noticed&nbsp;it.<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni07.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka8\"><\/a>But let&nbsp;us stop confusing the sacred and the profane and move&nbsp;on&#8230;<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni08.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka9\"><\/a>Around Broni I&nbsp;noticed several construction sites aimed at&nbsp;restoring old buildings.<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni09.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka10\"><\/a>The result is&nbsp;sometimes rather shocking. Well, I&nbsp;assume the designer of&nbsp;this balcony has already been executed.<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni10.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka11\"><\/a>The most beautiful and well-kept building in&nbsp;all of&nbsp;Broni turned out to&nbsp;be&nbsp;a&nbsp;nursing home for the elderly. At&nbsp;first glance, I&nbsp;had taken it&nbsp;for a&nbsp;five-star hotel or&nbsp;a&nbsp;casino.<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni11.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"the nursing home for the elderly in Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka12\"><\/a>At&nbsp;this point it&nbsp;is&nbsp;important to&nbsp;point out that Broni&rsquo;s pavements are equipped for disabled people who move independently in&nbsp;wheelchairs. I&nbsp;had even thought about suggesting the idea to&nbsp;Maran, but then&nbsp;I remembered the condition of&nbsp;90% of&nbsp;Milan&rsquo;s pavements and realised that they are not exactly a&nbsp;priority for the City Council.<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni12.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka13\"><\/a>Another nice thing seen in&nbsp;Broni: at&nbsp;crossroads the pavements are often protected in&nbsp;the following way.<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni12.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka14\"><\/a>Ah, did you notice what an&nbsp;original solution this&nbsp;is: the cigarette is&nbsp;extinguished and thrown straight into the bin, so&nbsp;the operator only has to&nbsp;change the full bags. It&nbsp;is&nbsp;a&nbsp;new type of&nbsp;bin in&nbsp;my&nbsp;collection.<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni12.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka15\"><\/a>All the other bins in&nbsp;Broni, even when original, are disguised with enormous plastic bags.<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni15.jpg\" class=\"slideshow\" onClick=\"return ['https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2014\/broni15b.jpg']\" title=\"waste containers of Broni\" border=\"0\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka16\"><\/a>The typical benches of&nbsp;Broni:<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni16.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"typical benches of Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka17\"><\/a>A&nbsp;reinforced concrete chair near a&nbsp;private entrance:<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni17.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"Broni\"><br \/>\n<a name=\"fotka18\"><\/a>And, to&nbsp;conclude, the bicycle parking next to&nbsp;the&nbsp;FS railway station. Unfortunately it&nbsp;was empty and with the gate open, so&nbsp;I cannot tell you anything about its popularity or&nbsp;security. The idea, however, is&nbsp;a&nbsp;good one.<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/travelfoto\/broni2012\/broni18.jpg\" border=\"0\" title=\"Broni\"><br \/>\nAnd so I&nbsp;have finished once again. If&nbsp;you happen to&nbsp;be&nbsp;in&nbsp;the area, take a&nbsp;walk around. If, on&nbsp;the other hand, for some reason you cannot, do&nbsp;not despair too much.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The photographic account of a tourist visit to Broni on 7 December 2012. My assessment of the place: if you are in the area, you may as well stop by.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":206,"menu_order":34,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-655","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/655","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=655"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/655\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/206"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eugigufo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=655"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}