Located about an hour southwest of Milan, the town of Vigevano is best known today for its shoe production. Yet, during the Renaissance, the Sforza dukes transformed an old hunting lodge in Vigevano into a stronghold known as the Visconti-Sforza Castle, which was designed by Bramante and Leonardo da Vinci.  The front of the castle has a large tower that looks over an anterior piazza much the same way the tower does in the homonymous Sforza Castle in Milan. There is also a Ducal Palace within the castle that overlooks a charming, arcaded piazza, at one end of which you can find Vigevano Cathedral. Buona visita!