Every design for Busto Arsizio

Busto Arsizio lies at the northern edge of the Po plain, on the gravelly upland south of the Varese Prealps, along the old "Milan's road" that once linked the city with Lake Maggiore. Milan is not far to the south, Malpensa airport is closer still, and the town sits in the middle of one of the most densely built-up corners of Lombardy, the largest municipality in its province.

There is a stubborn, hard-working pride here that comes from history: the first inhabitants burned the woods to clear fields, which gave the place its name, and later generations tanned leather, wove fustian and then filled the town with cotton mills. The local dialect, Büstócu, still sounds a little different from its neighbours. Life today runs on industry and trade, and on sport, from the Pro Patria Museum to the Agorà della Scherma and a museum dedicated to the town's cycling history. In the centre, the Basilica di San Giovanni Battista and the Santuario di Santa Maria di Piazza face the busy streets, and the Giardini del Museo del Tessile keep a quieter corner green.

Above it all rises the Campanile del santuario di Santa Maria di Piazza, the tower every Bustocco looks for on the way home.