Cremona and the river

CREMONA AND THE RIVER

Cremona is, and has always been, bound to its river, the majestic Po which made it rise in the Classical era, the same river that made it a powerful Commune in the middle ages and the same river generation after generation of landowners have used to water the crops in the fertile surrounding valley, farming cereals and feed-stuff.
The city is connected to the river by means of a long wooded boulevard, Viale Po (lit. Po Boulevard), that crosses a residential area built according to the Garden City criteria. A large green area, called Parco al Po (Po Park) overlooks the river; the park includes the embankment, a series of private-owned sport facilities (the Canottieri circle) and the main municipal sports facilities (swimming pools, tennis courts, soccer fields, a skating rink and a bowls centre). Near this first area stands the Maffo Vialli park, a large area with typical Po Valley trees and sporting a quite popular cycle track and the fenced Ex Colonie Padane area.
Upstream the above mentioned Canottieri facilities, the embankment's course leads to the Porto 41 area, featuring a system of sluices that allow access from the Po river to the already built part of the channel; it has recently become an important point of landing for river cruise motor boats. The city's other public areas are smaller and, in addition to the Piazza Roma park there is also the Vecchio Passeggio park which houses the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale, established thanks to the devise by the Ala Ponzone marquis (1761-1842), an avid collector as well as an expert naturalist.

Pagina aggiornata al 29-11-2011