The salient feature of the district between Porta Nova and Porta Orientale (or Porta Venezia) is the presence of numerous residences, dating for the most part from between the 18th and 20th centuries.
Setting off from Museo Bagatti Valsecchi, you can visit the refined Palazzo Morando, home of historical collections. Nearby, you can find Palazzo Borromeo d’Adda, with its noble colonnaded courtyard. Strolling along Via Manzoni, past the Poldi Pezzoli Museum, a short deviation leads us to the elegant Palazzo Belgioioso, designed by Giuseppe Piermarini. Not too far, you can enter the Gallerie d’Italia (Galleries of Italy) and discover, by means of the museum route, two important private 18th/19th-century palazzos; particularly impressive is Palazzo Anguissola, built and decorated between 1775 and 1778. Behind the Gallerie d’Italia, taking either Via Morone or Via degli Omenoni, you catch a glimpse of Via Manzoni, which was originally known as Corsia del Giardino or “Garden Boulevard”, a well-balanced and compact architectural backdrop constituted by a multitude of attractive aristocratic residences. From here you can access to Piazza della Scale, where you can face Palazzo Marino – the headquarters of the City Council – the sumptuous late-Renaissance forms of which are evident in the courtyard, the main public room and the rear facade.
