Saturday, March 21, 2009
Cittadella, Castelfranco, Treviso, Italy
Finally, I had arrived at the last day of my travels in Italy. Annalisa suggested we spend the day traveling northwards towards Treviso airport where I would be taking my flight to London rather late that evening (my flight was scheduled to depart from Treviso at 10. 25 pm).
After breakfast and a shower, Annalisa took me shopping to her local supermarket as I did want to stock up on Proscuitto de Parma, Gorgonzola Cheese, Lavazza coffee, almond cookies, etc. for which Italy is famous. After we had done our shopping and I had bought all of the goodies I wanted (including Baci chocolates), Annalisa dropped me off at the city center of Vicenza so that I could go to the Church of Santa Corona to see a particular painting by Paolo Veronese entitled The Adoration of the Magi.
It was another gorgeous day and the streets were packed to capacity with shoppers and strollers enjoying the sunshine. Asking for directions (as I had not brought a map along with me), I found my way to the Church of San Lorenzo first (a Romanesque church) and then to the Church of Santa Corona where the Veronese was quite lovely indeed.
Then, I decided to join the shoppers and went in search of a pair of earrings that I have long admired on Annalisa. I was thrilled to find them in an expensive perfumery but since I had coveted them for ages, I did buy them right away. Browsing through the other fashionable boutiques and jewelry stores, I discovered that the recession does not seem to have touched this corner of Italy at all.
Back home for lunch, I discovered that Annalisa had been busy concocting a delicious chicken dish with olives which she served with polenta. I love polenta and the preparation in a spicy tomato sauce was just what the doctor ordered after my long walk. Soon it was time for me to bid goodbye to her lovely boys and load my bag into her car for our drive northwards.
Cittadella:
Cittadella is a small medieval walled town in the Veneto, which Annalisa thought I would enjoy seeing. She parked her car and we walked towards the town square taking in the age of the solid walls that encircle the settlement. There was a concert of sorts going on in the square with a local group belting out some popular Italian songs. We did not stay long in this town and getting back into the car, we drove off to Castelfranco.
Castelfranco—The City of Giorgone:
Castelfranco lay about a half hour away. This town, too, a lesser-known tourist attraction is famous for its association with the Renaissance painter Giorgone who was born here and spent most of his very short life in its vicinity. He died in 1510 of plague and though he made a small contribution to the history of Renaissance art, it is memorable.
Giorgone’s Madonna:
Our first stop after we had parked our car and crossed the street towards the ancient quarter was the Duomo or Cathedral where the famous Madonna by Giorgone is to be found. Though it was a very sunny day, these small Veneto towns were almost empty. It is not quite tourist season yet and only a few locals were going about their business.
Giorgone’s painting is concealed in a small chapel in the cathedral. A pamphlet gives details about it. It is quite exquisite indeed, the face of the Madonna brimming with innocence and loveliness. Several other visitors arrived to see the painting while we were present and within a few minutes, we made our way out of the Cathedral.
Sampling A Street Market:
We spent most of the next hour browsing through a local street market that stocked every kind of cheese, ham and cookie possible. Annalisa bought some focaccia for Giovanni who loves it and some cheese and as we tasted our way through the entire street, I thought I had eaten enough snacks for the day.
We sat ourselves down by a pavement café and ordered hot beverages—coffee for Annalisa, hot chocolate for me. I have always loved the hot chocolate in Italy but on this trip, I hadn’t yet tasted any. Swirled over with a thick crown of cream, it was very good indeed and I was glad I had bought some Perugina cocoa from the supermarket in the morning.
With dusk settling over Giorgone’s city (there was a nice monument to him right behind us in the square), we got back into our car. It had been a splendid day during which Annalisa and I discussed such a vast number of issues and had resolved to work on the house swap very seriously for next summer. Both of us were grateful to have had this time together and we know that we will always cherish it.
Treviso:
Then, it was necessary to get back in the car and drive to Treviso, which Annalisa informed me, is also a very impressive city. Unfortunately, we did get caught in traffic on the way out of Castelfranco and reached Treviso later than expected. It was dark by the time we arrived there—which meant that I did not get a chance to see a whole lot of it. However, we did need to find a place for dinner and when Annalisa made a few inquiries, we were directed to a ristorante called Tony del Spin.
We had no reservation and were glad that the proprietor allowed us to be seated as he told us that he place was fully booked for the evening. It turned out that the restaurant was one of the oldest and most popular restaurants in Treviso and we were glad we found it. Annalisa had a glass of wine while I stuck to water (as I was afraid that my sulphur allergy will flare up with all the wine I had been drinking in Italy). Annalisa chose a zuppa de pasta con fagioli (soup with pasta and beans) while I went for the gnocchi de patate con gorgonzola (potato gnocchi in a gorgonzola cheese sauce). My gnocchi were indeed so creamy and tender that they just melted in my mouth and the sauce was perfect—neither too strong nor too flavorless and of the right creamy consistency indeed. It made a wonderful finale to my stay in Italy and I treated Annalisa to it. I was so grateful for all the sight seeing she has done with me, the many wonderful meals that she had conjured up in her own kitchen and the comfort that she, Giorgio and her sons had treated me to while I had stayed in their home.
An hour later, she had dropped me off at Treviso airport where I found some NYU students waiting to board the same flight as mine, returning to London after a long weekend in Italy. I would be arriving at Stansted airport at 11. 30 pm, so I was grateful for the fact that my friends Rosa and Matt Fradley would be picking me up and taking me over their place in Bishop Storford, just ten minutes away, to spend the night with them.
Our flight touched down on schedule and a half hour later, Matt arrived to pick me up once I had cleared Immigration. I was at their home in just a few minutes, meeting Rosa and her mother Margaret who had traveled down from Manchester to spend Mother’s Day with them. Over coffee in Rosa’s cozy kitchen, we chatted a little before we called it a day.
My travels in Italy had afforded me the opportunity to re-connect with a country I love dearly and with a landscape of which I can never tire. It gave me the chance to spend wonderful quality time with a dear friend and her family and to add to my professional experiences by lecturing to graduate students at a university in which the renowned Galileo once taught. I felt privileged and very blessed indeed to have had this opportunity and I do look forward to our travels in Rome next week when Llew will be here to join me as we go off on another one of our European jaunts.
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