Discovering Bra and its treasures

Considered the symbolic 'capital' of the Roero, Bra is a lively town of 30,000 inhabitants nestled in the hills at an altitude of around 300 metres. The first pleasure to be indulged in once you arrive in its historic centre is to walk through the pedestrian streets to admire its palazzi and especially its churches, starting with that of the Santissima Trinità, commonly known as the Battuti Bianchi, an illustrious example of Piedmontese Baroque. Sober on the outside, it arouses splendour on the inside with its single high nave covered by a barrel vault and finely decorated with white stucco elements that look like embroidery; very special is the wooden crucifix depicting Christ still alive, looking upwards and without wounds. Heading towards the nearby Piazza dei Caduti per la Libertà, one arrives at Palazzo Traversa, the city's museum, where it is possible to visit the rooms inside to understand the identity of the place. Another place to visit is the Casa del Cottolengo, the birthplace of the saint (San Giuseppe Benedetto Cottolengo) who lived in Bra in the 18th century and founder of the Piccola Casa della Divina Provvidenza di Torino (Small House of Divine Providence) that bears his name. Two other landmarks of the town are the sanctuary of the Madonna dei Fiori, a religious complex famous for a chapel commemorating the apparition of the Madonna that, according to legend, took place in 1336, and the Zizzola, the octagonal villa built in 1840 on top of the Monteguglielmo hill and now used as a multimedia museum space as the 'House of the people of Bra'.