Italia Meravigliosa 1

Issues:

• distances and measurements (km, decine, metri)



• Geographical locations: Padova; veneto, latifondo, 'bassa' padovana



• Places/buildings/street names (Piazza delle Erbe, Palazzo della Ragione, colli euganei, Ponte di Brenta)



• Technical terms (culinary: testa di pescatrice, fumetto di pesce; viticulture: esp. Pinot bianco and Pinot nero; architecture: pronao, cupola)



• Impersonal style (271: si trovano)



• Lengthy and convoluted sentences (272 and 277)



• Historical/literary allusions: il Santo, goldoniano

Summary:

270 Rocolo Wines

San Germano dei Bèrici (Vicenza 30 km).

Villa del Ferro-Lazzarini produces elegant and distinctive red and white wines. The winery and the villa both date from 1550.

271 Fish Market

Padua

The market in Piazza delle Erbe sells giant crabs as well as other essential ingredients of local delicacies.

272 Cathedral (Duomo)

Padua

The cathedral's Romanesque baptistery and chapels are home to some of the finest masterpieces of Gothic art with frescoes by Giusto de' Menabuoi, Alighiero Alticheri and Jacopo Avanzo.

273 Palazzo della Ragione

Padua

The 13^th century Palazzo della Ragione with its remarkable keel-shaped roof dominates the Paduan skyline. Inside is an enormous hall with 15^th century frescoes and outside lie Padua's main squares which bustle with life and colour.

274 Certosa (Charterhouse)

Vigodarzere (Padua 8 km)

The 16^th-century Charterhouse lies in unspoilt countryside on the banks of the Brenta It is now being slowly restored but the outline of the cloisters and the monks' cells are clearly visible.

275 Praglia Abbey

Abbazia di Praglia (Padua 17 km)

Praglia Abbey is one of Italy's oldest and largest religious establishments. Guided tours of the monastery start every half hour. The abbey also houses an international book restoration laboratory and the monks sell their local produce.

276 Villas of the Veneto region

Ponte di Brenta (Padua 1 km)

Noventa Padovana is a small village with the highest concentration of Veneto-style villas in the entire region. Very few are open to visitors, but many can be seen and enjoyed from the main street.

277 Villa Widman

Bagnoli (Padua 17 km)

The beautiful 16^th century Villa Widman houses a small theatre where Goldoni, the celebrated Venetian comic dramatist, performed his plays. Outside in the gardens are statues by Antonio Bonazza representing the sorts of characters featured in Goldoni's plays.

[300 words]

Translations:

270 White Wines from Rocolo

San Germano dei Bèrici (Vicenza 30 km).

Villa del Ferro-Lazzarini produces wines marked by their elegance and individuality. The whites include Bianco del Rocolo, made from Pinot Bianco and Chardonnay grapes, the Costiera Granda made from Tokai, and Busacalcara from Rhine Riesling, and the reds include Campo del Lago, made from Merlot grapes, Rive Rosse from Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon, and Rosso del Rocolo from Pinot Nero. The winery and the Veneto-style villa in which it is situated both date from 1550. San Germano dei Bèrici: Tel: 044/885137.

271 Fish Market

Padua

At the market in Piazza delle Erbe, giant crabs can be bought in season. They also sell fish heads, the essential ingredient of the fish stock used for making local delicacies.

272 Cathedral (Duomo)

Padua

The cathedral's Romanesque baptistery is home to the greatest masterpieces of the 14^th century master, Giusto de' Menabuoi. He painted over 100 frescoes on the walls depicting scenes from the bible and also a splendid, geometrical and very crowded representation of Paradise in the cupola. Another masterpiece is the cycle of frescoes by Alighiero Alticheri (and Jacopo Avanzo) commissioned at the end of the 14^th century by the Lupi family of Soragna. These works, which can be found both inside the cathedral in the chapel of San Felice and in the oratory of San Giorgio next door, show both a rather coarse realism but also a carefully thought-out approach to the layout of the scenes and are among the highest achievements of Gothic art.

273 Palazzo della Ragione

Padua

The tall shape of the Palazzo della Ragione (Palace of Reason) dominates the Paduan skyline. Originally built in the 13^th century, the keel-shaped roof was added a century later by Fra Giovanni degli Eremitani who had the work done by shipwrights. Inside is an enormous hall with 15^th century frescoes which covered the original designs by Giotto. The ground floor and the porticoes surrounding it house the dozens of stalls of the food market. Around the building and enclosed by other elegant buildings and porticoes are Padua's main squares: Piazza delle Erbe, Piazza della Frutta and Piazza dei Signori, all bustling with market stalls, people and bright colours.

274 Certosa (Charterhouse)

Vigodarzere (Padua 8 km)

Surrounded by ancient trees, the Charterhouse is in unspoilt countryside on the banks of the Brenta at a point where the river forms a sort of loop. Construction began in 1534 but the Charterhouse was subsequently abandoned. It is now being slowly restored but its geometrical shape and outline are clearly visible. The outer enclosure now houses a farm, although visits to the site are still allowed. Once beyond this enclosure, you enter a series of three cloisters with doors leading into the cells of the individual monks.

275 Praglia Abbey

Abbazia di Praglia (Padua 17 km)

Over a thousand years old, and nestling in one of the prettiest parts of the Euganean Hills, the Abbey at Praglia is one of Italy's largest religious establishments. There are guided tours of the monastery every half hour (knock and wait). The visit will take you through 4 cloisters: the botanical cloister, the rustic cloister, the double cloister and the hanging cloister. Off the cloisters, there are halls, the Chapter room, refectories (the large refectory has a remarkable group of 65 16^th century wooden stalls, richly carved, often with saucy figures), and a church, all in the extremely suggestive surroundings of hills and fields. The abbey also houses an international book restoration laboratory. Abbey produce (honey, sweets, liqueurs, wine) can be bought from the monks on the way out.

276 Villas of the Veneto region

Ponte di Brenta (Padua 1 km)

Noventa Padovana, about one kilometre from Ponte di Brenta, is a small village which contains the highest concentration of Veneto-style villas in the entire region. The centre seems to be constructed entirely of these types of villa, and built solely to show them off. Almost none of them are open to visitors, but they can nevertheless be enjoyed from a stroll along the main street. The majestic 16^th century villa Giovanelli, with its tall staircase, its colonnaded porch and its statues, stands on the Piovego, the river that runs through Noventa. A few yards away is the start of the main street which is lined with villas all built between the 16^th and 18^th centuries and nestling in green gardens: villa Grimani, villa Tedeschini, the ornate 17^th century parish church, villa Cappello, villa Manzoni, and villa Giustinian,.

277 Villa Widman

Bagnoli (Padua 17 km)

In the large agricultural area in the lowlands surrounding Padua lie the unexpected delights of Villa Widman, the 16^th century masterpiece of the architect Longhena. The villa is now a large farm, but it still offers enchanting reminders of the age of Goldoni, the great Venetian comic dramatist. The Widman family were patrons of the arts who built a small theatre in their villa where Goldoni performed his plays, and also commissioned Antonio Bonazza to fill the huge garden with statues. Bonazza's statues, probably among his finest work, include scenes showing figures from Venetian society depicted with both irony and realism and which are so typical of Goldoni's plays: fine ladies, children, noblemen, rich and poor, sly characters and huntsmen - all captured in various poses.