Pavia

Located on the plain on the banks of the River Ticino about 40 kilometers south of Milan, Pavia is prosperous business-like and university city of 75,000. It saw its heyday over a thousand years, as the capital of the Lombard kings, but survives today as a successful provincial capital to the area's agri-business and a university town. It is also home to significant artwork in its own right, including the nearby famous Renaissance Certosa di Pavia, and a couple well-preserved Romanesque churches. It retains much of the ancient Roman street plan, the center of which is nicely car-free, and an easy city to traverse by foot.