Guided Bike Tour in Catanzaro with Tasting

In Piazza Matteotti set in the San Giovanni complex there is the statue of the Cavatore, a work created by Giuseppe Rito and dating back to the second half of the last century which is considered one of the symbols of Catanzaro. Il Cavatore represents the work, that is the constancy and strength of the citizens of Catanzaro. Throughout the work stands out the color due to the contrast between a bronze sculpture that celebrates human work and the gray granite base from which water flows, both inserted in a neoclassical brick niche (built between 1869 and 1874). It is the only work left after the 1971 earthquake. It is a bronze statue that rests on a granite base, all enclosed by a semicircular cavity of material dating back to the late nineteenth century.

It stands on the land that once belonged to the former Convent of Santa Chiara, today the Carabinieri barracks. The park rises at an altitude of 320 meters above sea level and gives the Villa the appearance of a large terrace on which a wonderful panorama opens up, ranging from the Sila mountains to the shores of Capo Rizzuto. The first public garden in the city, the Villa was designed by the Andreotti architects and then enriched with extensive and lush gardens, designed by the architect Feher. Inaugurated on 21 January 1881, on the occasion of the visit of the royal family, the villa was named Villa Margherita, in honor of the queen. At the end of the Second World War, it took the name of Villa Trieste, but after the recent restoration and renovation works, it returned to its original name of Villa Margherita and its original splendor. The "F. de Nobili ”and the Provincial Numismatic Museum.

From the "Balconata di Bellavista", one of the border points of the historic center, the gaze is lost on the horizon in a breathtaking panorama that embraces the entire Ionian coast and which in the 17th century was a favorite destination for rich young British aristocrats who left from alone to discover Europe. It was the era of the "Grand Tour", the long journey in continental Europe that included a stop in southern Italy and precisely in Calabria, because the call of uncontaminated nature was strong and revealed itself in its full splendor to the incredulous eyes of the traveler. During these journeys many writers, artists and travelers were "kidnapped" by the views of Catanzaro, so much so that they called it "the queen of panoramas".

The late sixteenth-century palace belonged to the ancient Rich family of Spanish origin registered with the nobility of Catanzaro and Taverna. It is located on the square of what is still today one of the ancient and best known historical districts of the city: the Pianicello. The large organism does not have particular formal accents on the outside, but it is among the most important examples of the sixteenth-century architectural landscape of Catanzaro, since it has an external typology characterized by the existence of two twin limestone portals. The portals belong to the Calabrian architectural-decorative tradition characterized by the classic diamond-point ashlars alternating with ashlar ashlars, by the key consisting of the classic curl with a phytomorphic motif, and by the two plinths decorated, at the bases, by mirrors.

The San Giovanni monumental complex was built between the fifteenth and seventeenth centuries on the remains of the destroyed Norman-Swabian castle, erected as a defensive structure by Roberto il Guiscardo and consisting of a curtain wall defended by high and crenellated towers. using the materials of the imposing fort.? Symbol of feudal power, the castle was partially destroyed in the 1400s and the Church of SS. Giovanni Battista ed Evangelista, seat of one of the most important brotherhoods of the city. In 1589, the Congregation of the Whites of Santa Croce obtained the concession to be able to build a pavilion in the area to be used as a hospital. In 1663 the Teresian Fathers built their convent there. The area subsequently housed the hospital, the Audience prisons, the offices of the military engineers.

The building represents an important example of eclectic architecture in the panorama of the Catanzaro and Calabrian buildings in general, in which Florentine connections and local culture blend together. Located in the ancient Giudecca district and on the place where the synagogue of the Jews existed, it was commissioned by the Garibaldi general Achille Fazzari and built between 1870 and 1874 by the Florentine architect Federico Andreotti who, with his brother Enrico, built in the halls of the floor the splendid cycle of frescoes with grotesque motifs is noble. The interior is of great importance, with the large staircase decorated in faux stucco marble, the rooms with nineteenth-century period furnishings and the elegant Art Nouveau fresco in the main hall by Alfonso Frangipane. Of note, on the ground floor, is the ancient Leone pharmacy which, built between 1893 and 1895 by Federico Leone and his nephews Nicola and Alfonso, represents a real monument of the city.

The youngest of the great Italian theaters. His fresh and exciting experience has its roots in the ancient city theatrical tradition that had its beating heart in the Real Francesco Theater, then the Municipal Theater, crashed by the demolition pickaxe in early 1938, after 108 years of life. In this respect, the architect has adhered to the tradition of classical Italian theater. And so the parterre, which contains orders of seats for 380 spectators, follows an undulatory movement on an almost concave surface. Along the curved line of the hall, there are the five tiers of boxes, decorated with seven-pointed stars (this is also a musical symbol) and which can accommodate another 550 spectators. The stage, with its large dimensions and its technological equipment, allows the performance of various genres of entertainment, from the great opera to the symphonic, from dance to operetta, from prose to musical.

The Basilica of the Immaculate Conception represents for the people of Catanzaro the building most dear to memory as it is inextricably linked with the cult of the SS. Immaculate Virgin patron of the city. The original hall structure of the 13th-century Franciscan church has been remodeled several times. The facade is neoclassical.

Presumably built between the end of the 15th century and enlarged around 1532. It was erected by the Confraternity of St. John the Baptist and the Evangelist and its confreres are honorary Knights of Malta. The façade of the late Renaissance church is enlivened by an ellipsoidal staircase built later and by a portal carved in local stone. Over the portal is a niche that houses the statue of the saint.