A Walk in Padua

On a recent trip to Venice, my wife and I decided to take a couple of days there. We stepped down from the train and walked a few minutes to our hotel, the Methis.

Since the citycentre is compact — and because we’re walkers — we are always grateful when places are not only reachable on foot but also situated on paths through interesting spaces such as markets, piazzas and parks along small waterways.

It’s no more than seven minutes from the train station through Piazza di Statzione and onto the city’s most renowned art venue, the legendary Capella degli Scrovegni. From the street it looks like an ordinary building but its origins are a bit eccentric: The family chapel was built in the early 1300s by Enrico Scrovegni as a burial place for his father, a rich money-lender who was denied a Christian funeral because of his profession.

Inside are dozens of frescoes by the legendary artist Giotti. Depicting the lives of Christ and the Virgin Mary, these are astonishing even to visitors disinterested in religion. (They are also so valuable, we had to stand a few minutes in a decontamination room before being allowed inside for our 15-minute viewing.)

From the chapel, we took our time strolling to Via VIII Febbraio, a street with a casual stylish atmosphere. In time we came to what may be one of the most remarkable historic sites we’ve visited in Europe: Padua’s Bo University, founded in 1222 and much of it set in a grand palace. A guide can take you to a statue of the world’s first female university graduate. (Her degree, granted in 1678, was in philosophy, though scholars insist she wanted one in theology.)

Today’s students hail from all over Italy and beyond, and take the same courses as students everywhere. But in its dynamic years of the 16th century, this was where students heard some of human history’s most legendary lectures: Galileo expounding his theories of astronomy, some so shocking he was opposed by the Church and placed under house arrest. But time proved him to be on the right side of both science and history.

If you follow the street that leads to the university, you’ll eventually come to Piazza del Cap Signori, the site of a 14th-century palace of a Venetian ruler. Other sites worth a visit are the sun-washed Piazza del Santo and its Gothic style Basilica with spires like minarets. It houses the most defining and dramatic of all Padua relics: The tomb of St. Anthony of Padua, the town’s patron saint.

Begun around 1230, it remains a revered destination for the devout, many of whom are on “once-in-a-lifetime” visits to Italy.

The tomb — in the basilica’s Cappella del Santo — is almost in sight of the high altar with its great sculptures by Donatello. It’s often the destination of religious people who leave poignant written requests for St. Anthony’s intervention their lives.

Our walk, considering pauses and lingering here and there, took an entire afternoon. It gave us fresh revelations of the beauty of northern Italy and its architecture plus memories so unique they will last a lifetime.

MORE INFORMATION

The best way to reach Padua from Venice is by train. We used A Eurail pass that gave us four days travel in Italy. For information, see ACPRail.com. Our hotel, The Methis, was clean, efficient and well located. Contact hotelmethis.com. Note that reservations are necessary for many attractions.