Day 3 Vicenza

View from our hotel.
see all photos »

Our hotel in Vicenza was at the top of a hill overlooking the city.  It was an amzing view.  The place was run by cute eldery ladies and felt a bit like a monastry.  Kate, Emily, and I shared a room.  Breakfast was at 730 and was unexplectantly fantastic: cereal, bread, yogurt, tea, and cappuccino.  We walked from the hotel down to the city.  This was Palladio's hometown.  He was the most influentail architect in the area.  We visited many city palaces and then Teatro Olympico.  Inside the theater was amazing.  The stage was designed so that it looked like city streets in perspective.  I loved just sitting inside the space and sketching.  As you look up your gaze was lost in the clouds and blue sky.  The ceiling was painted this way to reflect Roman antiquity, where amphitheaters were open to the sky.  It's fun to image how Palladio came up with such an innovation deisgn for it's time.

Neighborhoods with river running through
see all photos »

The most famous site we visited was the Villa Rotunda.  It was located a bit outside the city on a large hill.  Palladio was hired to design it as a summer home for the Capra family.  In our 1st year of architecture school we designed a visitor center for the Villa and it was neat to see what it really feels like there.  We couldnt get inside because it was closed that day but we got to venture around for a bit until the keeper and his little dog chased us out.  It was hard not to take a million pictures of these wonderful places.  Vicenza had the most perfect little neighborhoods.  It was one of the most well kept cities.  It is know as Italy's 'Silicon Valley' because of its overwhelming wealth. It began to sprinkle as we got back on the interstate.