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Hermitage San Paolo of Marchirolo

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Visiting historic sites has been a wonderful pastime.  Northern Italy is famous for many such places. Not too far from Milan is Varese, a city with a lot of history, which is now a buzz place for many who prefer to live close to the Switzerland.

A few kilometers from Varese is a small village called Marchirolo. Driving 30km from Varese city one is welcomed by meandering roads taking us to small and ancient villages occupied by hermitages of the past.

Welcoming sight at Marchirolo is the Church of San Martino.
Church of San Martino

History reads that The parish church of San Martino di Marchirolo was created August 19, 1633 by the bishop of Como, Lazarus Carafino.

San Martino church from the side as one takes the "Mulotteria" to San Paolo hermitage

Bell tower of San Martino church
It is a walk of 55min on a mulatteria (an old expression of saying a route meant for weight-bearing mules in the past).

The walk is not treacherous but climbs rapidly and the angle is not easy except on foot. We do see some off-roaders that can use a 4-wheel drive to do this climb. Water runs from small trenches throughout adding a poetic touch to the climb.

The sky changed as we walked up to the Hermitage. 

Walking beside a house on the alpine streets.

Autumn had its role and the forest floor was filled with leaves and chestnut seeds.

The three trees added a Shakespearean exclamation to the climb that was interspersed with sharp climbs with some flat terrains. .

Meandering unmarked and marked paths welcomed the trip with guessable delays. 


It took 30 min as the climb became more rapid after the first 25 mins from the San Martino church.

Chestnuts were seen in some parts with the leaves of the past season.



Reaching a small opening looking into the valley above was amazing. Sun seemed to set faster. 


Only green was this thorny plant with its inedible berries.  


A wooden stand reminded the missing horses. 


We slowly reached the top. Welcomed by wonderful sights and the hermitage of San Paolo. 

The hermitage of San Paolo is located on a large boulder at an altitude of 800 meters, in a location engulfing a beautiful view of the lakes and mountains. I was told that it was founded in the twelfth century by the fathers who resided in the Lateran Lavena.

The view of the hermitage from the side. 

View from the top of the hermitage overlooking the lakes.


Clouds had their effect
It was just after 4:30pm and it was getting dark. Being winter, sun was going down much before 5pm.

The snowy peaks - perhaps one of the many sights that inspired the hermits of the past. 

The camera zoomed into this view for the snowy peaks far away. 

Lakes and mountains - a view from Eremi di San Paolo 

History reads that it was established by a certain friar William of St. Paul's Church in 1352, this was the Romanesque church of San Paolo.

Before the end of my journey
may I reach within myself
the one which is the all,
leaving the outer shell
to float away with the drifting multitude
upon the current of chance and change.
  — Rabindranath Tagore in 'Fireflies'

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