PADUA- PADOVA - I think I belong here.

---

Geo: 45.4096, 11.8766

2nd February 2016
PADOVA
Padua is such a beautiful city with so much history.
My son is living here so I have come for a visit.His apartment is tiny but family is family.There is always room for family.
The cobble stone streets just scream out History with every step.
I have this strange connection with this city.
One of the shops a that sold stationary is called Prosdocimi. Almost my surname. Then in the church there was a statue of St. Prosdocimo.
One night as we where driving through the old streets of Padua, I spotted a street sigh.
"Ah," I screamed.
Everyone in the car jumped out of their seats and got a fright.
"What's wrong? What's happening?" They all asked.
"The street is called San Prosdocimo!"
"Is that all?" They all sighed. "I almost had an accident because of your screaming!"
But what no one else understood was that my whole life my name in Australia was a nightmare.
No one could say it.
No one could spell it.
I remember at school because there where a few Tania's (a common name at the time) they HAD to say my last name.
It would start, "Tania Pr.. Pro... Pr.... Pros......"
I would put them out of their misery and say, "Yep, that's me! Pros-do-ci-mo."
Then the silliest name I was called was Alphabet! Because nearly every letter was in my surname.
Then at work when they called my name over the microphone they said, "Ms. Doc come to the registers."
So finally for once in my life I was normal.
So of corse I was going to scream.
San Prosdocimo's tomb is in the basilica of Santa Giustina which is at the Prato Della Valle. The chapel dedicated to him was built over his tomb outside the walls of Padua.
The Parton Saint day is 7th of November.
So there is even an excuse to party, but not just for me but for the Saint of corse.
The city is wonderful.
The market place with all of it's amazing food and fresh fruit and vegetables.
It was heaven.
The smell of coffee and the hams and the cheese and the bread and don't forget the pastries and the pizza.
Ahhhhh. True heaven.
Most of my time there I was running about with my son going to doctor appointments. Washing clothes. Buying things for the house. Cooking. The mother things.
We walked everywhere and the trams made it very easy to get around.
Padua is centrally located and you can to get to quite a few places from the main train station. We caught the train to Venice and spent the day there site seeing.

---