Veneto - Part One

Veneto is the Italian region that runs north from Venice to the Austrian border. There are so many interesting things here, I'm going to cover it in three or four footprints.

And here is Part One:

After a short visit to tourist-laden Venice, Brenda and I hopped on a train north to the charming little town of Conegliano. Yeah, I know, I'd never heard of it either, but the promise of cheap and plentiful Prosecco convinced me it was a place I needed to visit.

Valdobbiadene is the region where all Prosecco is produced, and Conegliano is the second largest city in the area.

The town of 35,000 is surrounded by hills covered with vineyards and is home to some of the oldest structures we've seen on this trip. The historic part of the city has streets lined with porticos that bear frescos as old as the 1400s. Atop the hill overlooking the town stands a 1000 year-old castle. The basilica was built in the 1200s and has artwork inside from the fifteenth century and fabulous wood sculptures from the 1500s. Ancient walls, roadways, and buildings seem to be around every corner.

Brenda was here twenty years ago and used to enjoy a glass or two of Prosecco in the main square for one Euro per glass. Prices have more than tripled since then, but the pleasure factor remains the same.

When we arrived on Easter Monday, literally everything was closed. Fortunately, we had brought a bag of chips and some soup with us that we had bought in Venice, and our AirBnb host had left us cookies and a bottle of Spumante in the fridge. And that was our Easter Monday dinner. It could have been worse.

Despite the miserable weather outside and the poor diet we consumed on our first day in Conegliano, I just know we're going to like it here.Read more