Padova and Verona

Both are cute little towns in the north of the country,with very different architecture. Padova, which is our pied-a-terre until we leave Tuesday for Belgium, has covered walkways all over the town centre, with beautiful open arches to gel you navigate. They had a Nuit Blanche last night, but we were so exhausted from the travel and endless walking the few days before that we chose the nuit noire option.

Verona is a charming walled city, with lots of medieval history, including a castle that has become an art museum. There are of course the Shakespeare connections, but beautiful Verona has some roman sites and a stunning backdrop of mountains in the distance and a lovely, flowing river with old bridges. Very open due to Napoleonic influences, with those broad boulevards one might associate with Paris. Our day trip there was lovely, but the folly of climbing the 300 steps to the top of the Lamberti tower for photos instead of taking the lift just wiped us out tonight and so it is an early bedtime.

I have to tell you, before I sign off, about our last supper in Firenze. We went to an amazing, authentically local restaurant on the recommendation of another waiter. Its name was Antico Fattore, and in its glory days of the 1920s and 30s, it hosted writers and philosophers alike on Wednesdays. The discussions and debates were always over good food and wine, of course, and the evening meal there was one of the absolute highlights of our trip so far. Our waiter, Mikele, told us about the history of the place and also led us down a gastronomic adventure that ended with a lemon cheesecake, chocolate slice, and Arancello, which is the orange equivalent to limoncello. The best part of the resaurant's past is that they were so supportive of the writers that congregated here that they started a literary prize inn their honor. The tradition continues to this day, and I promised Mikele a copy of Behind Blue Eyes, signed by me, once I get the book published or self-published in the next year or two. What a grand way to end our time in that great city.

Edit: you can find out about the prize and its history from their website at http://www.mega.it/antico.fattore/epremio.htm , although you need to book a table there to experience the joy of Arancello.