Yes, It’s Big!

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Moscow’s Red Square is bigger, but this comes close!

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My second stop on my visit to Padova was to the Prato della Valle, the 90,000 square meter elliptical square near the Basilica of St. Anthony.  It is one of the largest squares in Europe and the largest in Italy.

Having looked up pictures of Padova some time ago, Prato della Valle is what I remembered most…the beautiful green island center, l’Isola Memmia, surrounded by a small canal bordered by two rings of 78 statues, representing famous citizens of Padua, such as popes, doges and others, like Galileo and accessed by four stone bridges.  This was one of the things that I most wanted to see in Padova!

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Prato della Valle, or Il Prato, as it is affectionately known by locals, was once a swampy area south of the city walls.  In 1636, a group of Venetian and Veneto notables constructed an opulent theater as a venue for mock battles on horseback on this site.  In 1767, the land, belonging to the monks of Santa Guistina, became the property of the city of Padua.  In 1775, Andrea Memmo, whose statue is in the square, decided to reclaim and reconstruct the area.  After excavations eventually uncovered an ancient Roman theater, of which remains were used to build the Basilica of St. Guistina, the city recognized the historical value and transformed the area into one for public use.

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Palazzo Angeli

The square is surrounded by beautiful Italian buildings including the Palazzo Angeli, which was constructed in the 15th century and was the residence of Andrea Memmo, La Loggia Amulea, a neo-gothic style palace which was the seat of the fire brigade of Padua from 1906 to 1989 and the benedictine Abbey of Santa Giustina.  Take the time to walk around the outer ring of Il Prato and inspect each of these historic buildings.  There are also many dining establishments adjacent to the square.

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Entrance to Luna Park

Prato della Valle is now a place that attracts a large number of visitors who use the area as a meeting point, a place to skate, stroll, study or chat until early hours of the morning.  The city also hosts skating competitions on the wide asphalted ring that surrounds the square and many celebrations, complete with music and fireworks take place here.  On Saturdays, a huge market occupies almost the entire square and in June, an annual theme park adjacent to the square attracts lots thousands of visitors.  This theme park, called Luna Park, was operating at the time and although we were visiting on a Sunday, there was a small market set up on one side of Il Prato.

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Market stall in Prato Della Valle

While visiting Padova and the Basilica of St. Anthony, take the time to wander over to the Prato della Valle…have a bite to eat and take in the beauty of this area.  It’s not like anything you’ve ever seen!  Trust me, it’s big!

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Prato della Valle

 

 

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