When you hear the words "Prince of Monaco", the mind jumps straight to the Côte d'Azur, the casinos and the thin palaces on the slope above the Mediterranean. What is less known: the first real origins of the Grimaldi dynasty are not in Monaco, but in Italy. Ceva in Piedmont and Millesimo in Liguria are the two Italian towns that, genetically, historically and politically, hold all the links to the family ruling one of Europe's smallest kingdoms today.

The bond was made official in 1503, when Sestarine Grimaldi, daughter of Lambert Grimaldi (lord of Monaco), married Charles Gareso, marquis of Ceva. From then on, a plaque has stood in the Marenco theatre in Ceva confirming that this small town is an official part of the historical fabric of the House of Grimaldi. The alliance became a blood pact in 1528, when the two families united under the name Ceva-Grimaldi. Prince Albert and his family have visited the two towns institutionally many times - a signal that Monaco today still honours the soil where its roots lie.

Ceva sits on a strategic pass between Piedmont and Liguria, the gateway to the Tanaro valley. That is why a small town was important throughout the Middle Ages. It was an independent marquisate from around 1142, with its own coinage. When in the first half of the 16th century it was annexed to the Duchy of Savoy, that secured its place in European politics. The Tanaro river and its tributaries make the region rich in biodiversity - and from there, gastronomically, at the very top.

Today, Ceva is known for two things: the cheese that the Roman historian Pliny the Elder already praised as "caseo cebanum", and the truffles. The truffle market in Ceva is one of the most important in Italy, and since 1960 the town has carried the unofficial title "Capital of Mushrooms". If you want something concrete to see: the Forte di Ceva that resisted the Napoleonic armies, the church of Santa Maria Assunta from the early 17th century, the medieval porticoes, and the giant yellow bench of the Big Bench Community Project from where you have a panorama of the whole town.

Millesimo is a story of its own - included on the list of most beautiful villages in Italy. It lies on the right bank of the Bormida river, surrounded by dense forests, and that is the soil where truffle hunters come every season. Part of it is in the Bric Tana natural park. Founded in 1206, when Henry II Del Carretto enclosed the village and the local palace with a wall that is still remembered today.

The Del Carretto palace is today the centre of the old town, with exhibitions and classical music concerts. Here is also the medieval fortified bridge with a defensive tower with Ghibelline crenellations - one of the most photographed sites in Liguria. A step away is the Napoleonic museum in Villa Scarzella, as well as two medieval churches - "Santa Maria Extra Muros" with 12th-century frescoes preserved, and the "Visitation of the Virgin and Saint Anthony" from 1467. For Balkan readers who want to drop into the Italian north without the crowds of tourists: this is the alternative to Piedmont. Same food, same architecture, zero coaches from Germany.