Astronomical Tour in Brescia area


In the Brescia area we organized two international planetarium meetings, the first one, the "European Meeting of Mobile Planetaria" was held in 1995 and the second one, the "Meeting of French-Speaking Association" was held in 2001, it involved planetarians from France, Switzerland, Belgium and from the far La Reunion Island.
On other occasions, colleagues from different nations also joined us to take part in an "Astronomical Tour in Brescia".

The program for planetarians and teachers as tourists is divided in two parts: individual visits and group visits. The second one can include a special tour guide, a private bus if requested and it is organized in collaboration with a local travel agency. Individual and group visits include a tour to museums and monuments of astronomical interest in the city of Brescia, train fares (places to visit are only two hours by train from Brescia), hotel reservations in Venice and two or more days stay in the Dolomite Mountains are included.

With the help of a local travel agency it is also possible to reserve hotels and train tickets to any other Italian city. The area around Brescia is well known for its natural beauties and historic places such as the lake of Garda and the stone engravings of Valle Camonica, one of the most important sites in the world.
Brescia is near the famous cities of Verona and Milan, which are only one hour by train, and from Brescia there is a train connection to Florence, only 3 hours by fast train.
If requested, it is also possible to organize a visit to other Italian planetaria. More information is available in our Internet site.

Art and Science
In Brescia area it is possible and worthwhile to visit monuments, museums and historic buildings also of astronomical interest. This astronomical tour includes: a XVI century astronomical clock in the main square of the city (the name is Piazza della Loggia); an horizontal sundial of 1792 in the church of S. Giuseppe nearby; a XIX century painting "Newton discovers the refraction of light" (City Art Museum) with many elements of astronomical interest; an astronomical globe of Henricus Hondius; a collection of old astronomical and science instruments and clocks, including an 1052 year astrolabe. All these pieces are housed in the Santa Giulia Museum, the most famous one in the city of Brescia. The tour can end in the castle of Brescia, which is located on the top of the small hill that marks the center of the town. The castle offers a beautiful view of the city and a relaxing walk in the castle garden where a small popular astronomical observatory can be visited each Friday (9 p.m.) by the public. Another site of astronomical interest is the Natural Science Museum where the main italian meteorite, falling in Alfianello (Brescia area), is exhibited.

FOR INFORMATIONS:
Osservatorio Serafino Zani, via Bosca 24,
25066 Lumezzane(Brescia), Italy,
osservatorio@serafinozani.it