Did you guess that was where we were going?  The Sacro Monte Madonna del Sasso. A very famous church in Locarno.

We had planned on walking to this church, but that was before we got lost and we walked around in circles for a few kilometres before getting the map Mick needed to get us back on track. So we caught the funicular to the top and back again. At CHF 7.20 each it was well worth it.

  
 

The church was built on this site following a vision of the Virgin Mary which appeared to Brother Bartholomeo da Ivrea from the San Francesco monastery in the town in 1480. 

  
The church holds and displays many cultural and artistic pieces. I snapped a few to share in this post.

   
   

These last two were behind bars for security reasons. And yes, they are meant to be flames on everyone’s heads.

 
There was still a lot of climbing to get to the church even though we caught the funicular. This next photo shows Mick resting on the way back up.

 
I should have given a few more facts about this town at the start of our stay. A bit remiss of me. Locarno is located on the northern tip of Lake Maggiore in Switzerland close to the foot of the Alps. It is only pretty small with a population of around 15,000. One of the town’s top attractions is Sacro Monte Madonna del Sasso, hence our visit to this site.

We were greeted very warmly by our two dogs when we got home who were ready for a long walk. A pity we weren’t!