Vicenza is a lovely city located in the Veneto Province, north of Italy. My cousin Mirian lives in the outskirts of it, in a town called Altavilla Vicentina. In the end it's more or less one big city cause you don't really have a division between the two of them.
Mirian and I went on Sunday to visit the historic Vincenza. It is a very cute and preserved place. There were no people walking on the streets that day, except us and a few tourists. The shops were all closed, except for the ones selling Ice Cream, which by the way, was a great thing to help against the 35°C of that day.
There is not that much to visit in Vicenza, but it's quite nice to walk on the streets and to admire the houses - their beauty and architecture. But there's one place to visit in Vicenza that is truly unforgetable: the Teatro Olimpico (Olympic Theatre).
The Teatro Olimpico was constructed in 1580-1585 and it's one of only three Renaissance theaters remaining in existence (the two others are located in Sabbioneta and in Parma). The theatre was the final design by a famous Italian Renaissance architect called Andrea Palladio but it was not completed until after his death. It is built in an old fortress, and the rests of it can be seen right at the entrance. As I read somewhere (and I think it is one of the best ways to describe it), it is a roman theatre in a converted medieval building. When you enter the place, you have goose bumps because of the geniality of the work. It's just like if you are in a roman arena, with lots of marble statues around you. The most remarkable thing is the stage. Behind the white arches, a city can be seen, with houses and streets, and in the very back a painting to give the perspective that it continuous further. The city is perfect, the beautiful houses have detailed facades, with doors, curtains, windows, statues, etc. Try to look at the picture of the stage below, what you see of the city on the stage area is not a painting... It's truly an amazing place to visit.
Stage
Audience
Walking through the old city, we could see many messages on the glass window of the stores, informing that their owners and workers are out for vacation. That is a very common thing to do in Italy by August, when everyone wants to have their holidays...
Mirian and I took the car and she drove to a church up on the hills, where we could see Vicenza and the nice landscape. My cousin showed me a castle from far away and she expressed her desire to go check it out, and that was what we did. We drove then all the way to Marostica and visited the castle ruins and its thick walls.
The nice day ended up with a very pleasant meal. As we've seen too much of Italy that day, we decided to go to a chinese restaurant! :-)
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