A Day Around Vicenza ....

The best peach bellini's we've ever had! Prosecco mixed with a fresh peach and ice.

Stephanie enjoying her bellini.

Lea and her bellini.

Roscoe can not have bellinis.

Erin's Nutella Cosmopolitan. This was amazing.

Chin Chin!

Caprese salad with the freshest bufalo mozzarella.

Candice thinking about how amazing her bellini is.

Our nice waiter who let us stumble through some english words, some italian and some spanish thorwn in for no reason other than we had no idea how else to say some things.

After a great lunch we decided to explore Vicenza in the daylight.

Italians take a long break in the middle of the day to relax and eat large meals with their families- everything closes during this time.

Grappa tasting. Chocolate grappa is surprisingly good! We loved the little ice cream cone shot glasses.

The entrance to lea's house.

The view from the foot bride that we walk over to get to the downtown shopping area.

The Teatro Olimpico ("Olympic Theatre") is a theatre in Vicenza, northern Italy: constructed in 1580-1585, it is the oldest surviving enclosed theatre in the world. The theatre was the final design by the Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio, Renaissance, and was not completed until after his death. Thetrompe-l'œil onstage scenery, designed by Vincenzo Scamozzi, to give the appearance of long streets receding to a distant horizon, was installed in 1585 for the very first performance held in the theatre, and is the oldest surviving stage set still in existence.

The Teatro Olimpico is, along with the Teatro all'antica in Sabbioneta and the Teatro Farnese in Parma, one of only three Renaissance theatres remaining in existence. Both these theatres were based, in large measure, on the Teatro Olimpico.

Since 1994, the Teatro Olimpico, together with other Palladian buildings in and around Vicenza, has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site "City of Vicenza and the Palladian Villas of the Veneto".

Then later that night we decided to drive out to AEolia's Restaurant. In the beginning of the restaurant Æolia , the downstairs portion was a horse stable while the upstairs was a stop-over between the two adjacent Villas of Costozza - Villa Da Schio and Villa Trento-Carli. Like the lobby of a large hotel, guests would arrive in carriages and be greeted and escorted upstairs in the Aeolia Hall for refreshment while the horses were cared for below.

The name "Æolia" comes from the Greek mythological "God of the Wind", Eolo. The cellar at the Æolia (known as the "Jail of the Wind") is decorated with many frescoes dedicated to Eolo.

The frescoes of the Aeolia Hall were painted in the sixteenth century, and are attributed to the painting mastery of Zellotti and Fasolo, who at the time were students of the Veronese. The frescoes represent the planets, the solar system, and the signs of the Zodiac. 

In the center of the dome Eolo reigns supreme. Before the Napoleonic siege the walls were covered in frescoes painted by the artist Mantegna. The walls are now covered in marble arranged in a geometrical pattern to replace the frescoes which were stolen by Napoleon's troops during their siege.

The cellar is the fulcrum of the Æolia . It is connected with underground tunnels, hundreds of meters long, which carry the air at a year-round temperature of 10-14 degrees Celsius. At the entrance to the cellar, an inscription is carved:

Many famous guests have sojourned at the Æolia over the years.
Galileo Galilei, astronomer, 400 years ago while he was a guest of the Magnate Francesco Trento and teaching at the Universities of Padova and Venice, mentioned in his memoirs the acute lumbago and rheumatism he picked up at the Æolia and which remained with him for the rest of his life.
Andrea Palladio, architect who designed many of the historical buildings in the Veneto region, spoke of the ingenious air conditioning system; Mantegna, artist, also a guest of Francesco Trento, was responsible for the frescoes in the upstairs hall.

LOTS of wines.

Hmmm...which one do I want to try?

The underground tunnels.

REALLY old bottles of wine.

Salad appetizer.

Risotto with zucchini and pumpkin flowers.

Steak.

Cheese plate- the purple cheese was actually really good! It just looked a little scary.

AEolia's house wine.

Candice loves it.

"Fried" Ice Cream. Sort of like a creamy creme brulee. A great way to end an excellent meal.

Hiding out in Galileo's tunnels

The Villa next door to the restaurant.

A monument in the parking lot.

Let us in!

Really OLD wines and a cheese wheel under lock down.

Hmmmm....wonder what this poor cheese wheel did to get himself locked up?!

Across the street from the restaurant is a very local bar. Here is Stephanie hanging out with Antonio- the bar's house drunk. He bought us pineapple juice and then tried to molest Stephanie. We left soon after this photo was taken.