Palazzo Ducale in Mantua

In the morning, we went to the enormous Palazzo Ducale. The sheer size of endless rooms, hallways, lodgias and salons, coupled with the abundance and quality of decorations was quite overwhelming. The creativity and variety of the frescoes was stunning - my favorites were the labyrinth room with the Labyrinth frescoes on the ceiling, and the Hall of Mirrors. But the most impressive were several rooms decorated with show stopping tapestries. They are from the 16th century, depicting incredibly detailed scenes and still retaining their vibrant colors. One of the most impressive things we’ve ever seen. Who would have known that in a town that we’ve never ever heard about, would be such incredible treasures?? Before leaving Mantua, we went for lunch into a local tavern recommended by both our VoiceMap guide and lonely planet, and it didn’t disappoint! Delicious homemade food in a buzzing local establishment! We then drove 3 hours to Lyublyana to spend the night, before driving further towards Zagreb, to a remote location of our intensive tango learning weekend.Read more