Padua

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I had an active day of sightseeing and I think that I hit the highlights of what Padua has to offer. The city tram covers the areas of interest to the tourist, so I hopped on and off all day today. My first stop was the Scrovegni Chapel. Apparently this chapel is well known in the art world for its frescoes by Giotto, a famous artist who lived around 1300 AD. Giotto was among the first to break away from medieval painting by employing perspective, shaded coloration, and showing everyday people and scenes in his works. I have seen Giotto's frescoes in Assisi, but was unimpressed. Today I was definitely impressed! Luminous is the word that comes to mind. Perhaps it is because these frescoes are so well preserved thanks to humidity control and the limited numbers of visitors (I bought my ticket two months ago). I'm not sure how well it will translate onto the computer screen, but here is a photo. After Giotto, I took a break at a reportedly famous coffee house called Caffé Pedrocchi. I'm not sure why it is famous, but I thought their espresso and croissant were petty good! Across the street is the University of Padua and visitors are allowed in the first couple of courtyards. They are striking in their differences. The first is a Renaissance structure with pleasing proportions and multiple coats of arms decorating the walls (see photo). The second is from the 1930s when Fascism controlled everything in Italy and architecture was meant to make people feel small (see photo). At the end of the day I went to see the Basilica of St. Anthony of Padua. St. Anthony was a Franciscan monk, a contemporary of St. Francis actually, who was a noted orator and miracle worker. He was "sainted" a year after his death, one of the quickest in Church history. This large church was built around his tomb (see photo). A close up of the statue in front shows St. Anthony blessing all who approach (see photo). They have a strict "No Photo" policy inside, but I'll just say that I found the chapel and tomb of St. Anthony to be among the best I've seen anywhere. It is gorgeous, yet understated. It is well-lit and it is accessible. (So often such holy sights are cramped and dark and narrow for some reason.) St. Anthony is at the opposite end of the tram line from my hotel, so I hopped back onboard and returned here to write this blog. Now I plan to go out for another spritz and then dinner before I head out on more travel adventures tomorrow!

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