Venice - Queen of the Adriatic and other Veneto, Italy Things to Do Tips

The capital of the Veneto, the most unique city on the planet, and one of the grandest places you'll ever visit. The entire city of Venezia is a museum; on a trip to the city don't miss the following, and you can accomplish this in a day if that is all you've got:
- Piazza San Marco with the basilica San Marco, Campanile (bell tower), Doge's palace, Bridge of sighs, and surrounding area. Easily a day can be occupied here.
- Rialto bridge, and surrounding markets
- Churches, so many filled with incredible art & Architecture. Besides, San Marco, the Frari is a favorite for its variety of priceless art.
- A cafe by a canal

Hop in the #1 vaporetto for a Grand Canal cruise. This is the slowest water bus so you can take in the Palaces; it runs the length of the canal from the train station to San Marco, making all the stops.

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Website: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/b214e/22643/

Well, one day is better than none. If that's all the time you've got you can easily do you're own, inexpensive tour of the city, including a boat ride along the grand canal.

You are probably arriving on the train so take the public boat system, stop Ferovia directly in front of the Station, all the way up the grand canal and get off at San Marco. Line 1 goes slowest so you can see everything, 5 euro for 90 minutes, you can get on and off if you like. This trip is about 45 minutes. Depending on the type of boat, sit/stand in the outside area in the back or sides, for the best views. The photo is from this Boat.

The major sites you don't want to miss are around San Marco, (the Piazza, Basilica, Doge's palace, bridge of sighs, are all right here) and Rialto bridge area/markets. From San Marco you can walk easily to Rialto, which is on the way back to the train station. On a long day, you should be able to do another stop, say the Frari Church, between Rialto and the station. (Or do it in reverse, walk from station, Rialto, San Marco, and take the boat back) The city is one big museaum so plan to wander around if you can.

FYI, the water bus line 82 goes the same route but makes anly a few stops and cuts the time in 1/2, about 20 minutes San Marco to the station.

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The 2nd largest city in the Venteto (behind Venice), Verona is a very elegant town. There is plenty more for us to explore in the Veneto, but I can’t wait to return to Verona, on the River Adige.

The well preserved Roman Arena is a must see; it still holds crowds of 20,000 or more on a regular basis for music concerts and Opera. Surrounding the Arena on the expansive Piazza Bra are plenty of shops, cafes and restaurants.
Another great area of this City is the adjacent Piazzas of Piazza Erbe & Piazza Dei Signori. Plenty of shops and regular markets keep this area lively, and in the vicinity you’ll find the purported balcony of Shakespeare Juliette, judge for yourself. Around Piazza Dei Signori are located palaces and the tombs of the Scaligeri family, Verona’s version of the Medici.

We also enjoyed walking along the river and crossing a few of the bridges.

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Padua is not as established on the tourist agenda as some of the surounging; for me that add’s to its appeal. The city is one of the most ancient in northern Italy, and offers visitors some unique sites, once you get past if its rough edges.

Of course, It’s proximity to Venice (1/2 hour on the train) is reason alone to consider Padua as a base. It is a university town and has a very lively feel; the university is the second oldest in Italy, founded in 1222, with the likes of Gallileo having taught here. Padua is particulary lively around the 2 back to back Piazzas Dei Frutti and Delle Erbe (fruit and vegetable). These piazzas are sperated by Palazzo della Ragione, this palace is Europes biggest individual medieval hall. Both Piazzas host daily markets (every day except Sunday) which I’ve heard make it the largest regular food market in Italy behind Bolognas.

You'll likely want to visit the Basilica di San Antonio (you’ll hear it called Il Santo locally), dedicated to and final resting place of the City’s Famous patron Saint, St. Anthony. This church has a unique architecture and inside there is a good varity of art and sculptures.

Finally, an absolute must in Padua is the Cappella degli Scrovegni (Chapel of the Scrovegni family). The Giotto frescoes that cover the interior of this chapel represent one of the most important works in the development of European art. Few would argue that these paintings initiated the movement of art towards the renaissance. See my separate tip on this Chapel.

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Cappella degli Scrovegni

Hard to describe this chapel and the Giotto frescos that cover the inside. A monumental work of art that influenced many of the great European Artists that followed.

The chapel was built in 1303, and Giotto painted the interior from 1303 to 1305. The Chapel was commissioned by Enrico Scrovegni to lay to rest, and through the magnificent art, hopefully spare his father from eternal damnation. His father was a usurer (One who lends money at interest, especially at an exorbitant or unlawfully high rate) at a time when doing this wasn't cool. His dad was even mentioned in Dante's Inferno, suffering eternal damnation. I guess his loss is our gain.

If you have any interest in art, you should visit this chapel. It is frescoed with scenes from the life of Christ in incredible detail and revolutionary realism for the time. Also, two great statues at the alter are done by Pisani.

Just a few years back, major restorations on the frescoes were undertaken to preserve them.

It is a little spendy to enter (12 Euro, but you also get entrance to the nearby museum), but this all goes to the preservation of the work. You are held in an airtight room for 15 minutes while the air is purified before being allowed to enter the chapel. They show an informative video while you are waiting.

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Phone: 39 049 2010020
Directions: Between the train station and othermain sites downtown, on Corso Garibaldi. See web site.
Website: http://www.cappelladegliscrovegni.it/eng/index_e.htm

Vicenza is a nice size town, and without a doubt filled with some of the best examples of Italian Renaissance architecture.

The city is an easy stop on the main train line from Venice, Padova, and Verona.

The Piazza Dei Signori and Basilica at the center of town make a nice starting point for a visit; From here you're within a 5 minute walk to most of the major sites. These include:

Corso Andrea Palladio - an elegant pedestrian strip
Teatro Olimpico - A must, Palladios final and perhaps most impressive work, Europes oldest surving indoor theatre.
Santa Corono - Impresive church built in 1261 to house a thorn from Christs crown thorn, Paintings by Bellini and Veronese, and beautiful marble mosaics
A number of Palladian Palazzi

If you head south of the city center, up the hill behind the Train station you'll find the Pilgrimage church of Monte Berico and be rewarded with great views if the city and surroundings. The country side surounding VIcenza is filled with elegant Villas by Palladio and other architects.

Check out my Vicenza page for more info.

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Website: http://www.vicenza.org/

The town of Marostica is surounded by some very impressive, almost perfectly preserved Medievel walls. These walls were built by the powerful Scaligeri family that ruled Verona and the surounding areas in the 13-1400's. The city walls head way up the steep foothills of the Dolomites just to the north. For some chalenging exersize and great views you can walk from the lower town to the fortress at the top. We decided to drive and found ourselves in the couryard of the castle (don't do the drive if you have a Van or SUV, it's tight).

The Lower town is very pleasant with shops, cafe's and such. What is unique about Marostica is the huge Chessboard covering the main square, directly in front of Castello Inferiore (see photo). A life size chess game (Partita a Scacchi) is played here ever even year during the second week in September.

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This town, a bit out off the tourist map, has perhaps Italy's best-preserved Medieval. The walls that surround the town are impressive for their size (this is not a tiny town) and their exceptional condition considering they were constructed in the late 1300's. The walls are medieval, but you'll be disappointed if you expect a quaint medieval town. Many of the buildings inside the walls are more recent, and vehicle traffic zips through most of the streets.

You will find some nice architecture, including a Palladio work (Villa Pisani) for those fans of Palladio as myself. Piazza Vittorio Emanuele is a large pleasant square with the impressive Duomo looming above.

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Directions: The town is SW of Padova, due South of Vicenza, about 40 km from each.

Altopiano di Asiago - Or High Plain of Asiago is an area known for it's Asiago Cheese, bloody WWI battles, and skiing. The area is at the foothills of the Alps, about an hours drive North of Vicenza, and 1/2 hour NW of Bassano.
The town is small and pleasant, with about 6,500 residents. Italian, with a bit of alpine atmosphere. It is always a bit cooler than the areas to the south, making it a nice break when the temps are high. The Altopiano area is great for outdoor activities including hiking, biking, and skiing.

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The small medieval town of Asolo in the foothills of the dolomites doesn't get much play in the tour books, but it deserves a visit if you are in the neighborhood.

The town is compact and has great views with a central Italian hill town feel. A 1/2 day is enough to explore the 2 castles, shops, cafes and architecture of Asolo. It makes a nice break from some of the larger towns of the Veneto, and is within 10 km from from 2 great Villas - Including Paladios masterpiece Villa Barbaro in Maser to the east.

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