day tripping 2: colli euganei

Castle Garden in Este

The second day of the day tripping was all about the picnic. When you go out and about with a six-year-old girl, there are certain things to consider...namely, how can this be just as interesting to her as it will be to the adults? Failure to consider this results in misery for everyone. Truly.

The answer for my babe is to make it a picnic. She loves, loves, loves a picnic.

Noventa Vicentina

Sunday we headed toward Noventa Vicentina where a Festa di Primavera was taking place and we managed a fifteen minute stroll of the little city before the promise of a picnic had Young One protesting: "This is NOT a picnic. Where are the people with blankets? I am ready to go, NOW. A promise is a promise...yadda, yadda, yadda." It didn't take her long to catch on to my ploy of "Dear, we need to find some more goodies to add to our picnic basket." (We did manage to get kiwi and strawberries.)

People love this white asparagus. Me? Not so much.

Not quite willing to tempt fate, we cut our visit short and went out to Este in the Colli Euganei, where we had a relaxing picnic on the lawn of the playground in the shadow of a the castle. Young One was thinking: LifeIsGood...I just know she was.

These are not exactly common; to find one is a treat.

Este, located in the province of Padova, can be reached easily via the Riviera Berica (47 km from Vicenza). A major center during the Roman era, the city has been inhabited since the 9th century BC, when it was occupied by Indo-European people from Asia Minor. Much of the life in the town now centers around Piazza Maggiore, where the Gothic Palazetto degli Scaligeri can be found; however the draw for us is the 14th century castle and surrounding garden. (Source: Northern Italy's Best Loved Driving Tours, 2004)

Richard is listening to a Stateside radio with his new app. He's so cool. He is thinking:"How will I get up?"

She even asked to be photographed at the fountain...that's a true sign that she is in a happy place.

Sometimes I love the cheesy vacation photo. Don't you?

We've visited Este at other times of the year, but this was our first spring rendezvous with the quaint city. One thing about the Veneto that I've noticed is that things are generally orderly, organized, clean; this is especially true for Este. This weekend is the 10th Annual Este in Fiore -- a festival dedicated to flowers. Go, if you can. It's a beautiful time to be there.

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Some photos from my other visit to Este can be found here.