Padua, a city in the Veneto region of northern Italy, is situated 40 km west of Venice and 30 km southeast of Vicenza and stands on the Bacchiglione River.
Padua is know for being the economic capital of the Veneto region, it is also known as a pilgrimage city, pilgrims from all over the world come here to visit the Basilica of Saint Anthony where the grave of the Saint is preserved.
Padua is an important cultural city as well, here you will find the most complete and best preserved works by Giotto, which are hosted by the Scrovegni Chapel.
Padua is also the home of the second oldest university in Italy and one of the earliest universities in the world, the University of Padua, which was founded in the year 1222 when a group of scholars left the University of Bologna in search of more academical freedom and came to Padua, thus establishing this prestigious university. Galileo Galilei, Copernicus, Sobieski to name just a few of the alumni that attended the university. The university hosts the oldest anatomy theater built in 1594.
Also belonging to the university is the Orto Botanico di Padova, which is the world's oldest academic botanical garden that is still in its original location. Among the plants there you can see a palm planted in 1585 called the "Goethe palm", because the poet referred to it in his essay "The Metamorphoses of Plants" and a gigantic plane tree which dates from the 1680 and has a hollow trunk as a result of being struck by lightning.
Prato della Valle is a 90.000 square meter elliptical square which is the largest in Italy and one of the most largest in Europe. The square today is a monumental space of extraordinary visual impact, with a green island at the center, surrounded by a small canal bordered by two rings of statues, 78 to be exact, portraying famous citizens. It is the favorite place of all students who want to take a break from study and come here to chillax (chill out + relax). Also every Saturday there is a local fair here where you can buy pretty much everything from clothes, shoes, bags to flowers and other tools for your garden, etc.
The Palazzo della Ragione is a medieval town hall building located at the centre of Padua. Its great hall on the upper floor is reputed to have the largest roof unsupported by columns in Europe. In front of it you will find Piazza delle Erbe where during the day you can buy fresh fruit and vegetables and where every Wednesday night all the students from Padua gather to have a drink, usually the local drink called "spritz" which is an aperitif, and to socialize.
I will write an article for each of the tourist attractions I mentioned above and many others in my future posts, this was just an introduction to the beautiful city of Padua. Thank you all for visiting and I promise to post the next article as soon as possible.
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