Parco Giovanni Testori

Parco Giovanni Testori lies in Milan, 62,000 square metres of green where the city keeps a century of its own history. Inside, you walk among birch, lime, liquidambar, several maples, beech, ginkgo, plane, horse chestnut and more. It occupies ground where a garden village once stood, and parts of the old street plan still shape the paths.

The village was built in 1919 to house war veterans and railway retirees. The homes were modest and single-storey, each with its own garden. During the boom of the Sixties the houses came down to make room for condominiums. The demolition sparked protests, and in January 1971 the area saw one of Italy's first political housing occupations. Years of abandonment followed before the ground became a park, completed in the late Eighties. It is named for Giovanni Testori, a Milanese playwright whose works often depicted life in this very neighbourhood.

Today the space holds a large themed playground, a basketball and volleyball court, and a fenced area for dogs. It suits jogging, cycling, or simply relaxing in the shade. The old streets once carried the names of trees, and their species have since mingled and spread.