The best running trails around Villanova D'Ardenghi

A memorial to the laundresses. Thanks to Willem VS for his excellent descriptions!

The Statua della Lavandaia in Pavia is one of the symbols of the city. This beautiful sculpture, created by local artist Giovanni Scapolla in 1981, recalls the time when the banks of the Ticino River were populated by women who washed clothes in the river. Giovanni Scapolla was inspired by his mother, a famous washerwoman named 'Sciura Teresina', who always wore a traditional 'caplina' on her head. Names of the washerwomen: The washerwomen often had nicknames related to physical characteristics. The most famous was 'Angiuleta', but there were others such as 'Marieta dai pe tort' (with crooked feet) and 'Gianina la culona' (the plump one). Method: The women worked all day on the riverbank. The clothes were soaked overnight in large concrete containers and then washed by the river using a wooden board (‘a scägn’). Men and children collected the washed clothes and delivered them throughout the city. It was hard and unprofitable work, with only one or two lira each. Singing and entertainment: To pass the time, the washerwomen often sang. One of their favorite songs was “La donna è mobile” from Verdi's opera Rigoletto. They even adapted the text: 'La dona l'è UN MOBIL da met in sala, l'om l'è un asin da met in stala', referring to the fact that men walked around all day while the women stood still to to wash.

The statue depicts a washerwoman intent on washing clothes in Ticino, a practice that was widespread in ancient times. It was created in 1981 by the Borghigiano sculptor Giovanni Scapolla.

Cascina Venara has been recently renovated and houses a hostel. The farmhouse is located near a forest strip of great environmental value, a few steps from the river and the Venara Canal, a watercourse which contributes to attracting, together with the oxbows to which it gives shape, a large number of aquatic birds.

Nice route in the woods, near a stork reintroduction area. In fact, the presence in the area of rice fields, canals, banks and tree and shrub hedges, poplar groves, meadows and natural woods makes this area particularly suitable for the living conditions of the White Stork.

Pleasant refreshment point on the edges of Ticino, near Canarazzo.

beyond the bridge extends the Borgo Ticino, the former quarter of the fishermen and washerwomen, as illustrated by the statue of the pale star on the shore.

The statue of the washerwoman is one of the symbols of Pavia and it is a bronze work by the sculptor Giovanni Scapolla created in 1981, which is located along the characteristic Via Milazzo. It was placed in this place in memory of the many women who went along the banks of the river to wash clothes. On one of the marble slabs of the statue's base is engraved a poem in the Pavia dialect by the poet Dario Morani.