Spring in Vicenza

It's here!!! 

Foto Solo:Vicenza

Foto + Parole: Vicenza and Adventures

I know this blog is supposed to be about Adventures Made by us Taylors.  Well, with sickness abound (we both have colds...) and cold weather, we've been taking it easy and staying home or just locally in Vicenza.  Our last travel big adventure was back in November and I am working on a special presention for you of that Amsterdam and Brugge trip.

As a result, I've been writing much more about less adventurous topics like food and shopping.  Personally, I consider them adventures... Making pasta and gnocchi  by hand was certainly a culinary adventure.  It took us into new territory involving rolling pins and tossing flour all over the table.  Rolling and cutting out Christmas cookies, that may or may not have too much salt or not enough baking soda, was a little adventure-like.  We were on a trek to discover how they would taste in the end.  And shopping? Well, it may not be a true "adventure" but here in Italy, it's a Saturday past-time like no other.

I've also been frequenting more and more blogs.  I've picked up that some sites do "Wordless Wednesdays" and post only photos.  I've been providing you a little Italian verison of "Foto Solo" with Christmas Dinner and a few of the last adventure (to tide you over until my presentation is complete...)  Since the majority of our time has been in Vicenza lately, I decided this week to share some from our temporary hometown.  (Technically, I guess I just broke the "Wordless Wednesday" chain, but I wanted to explain my past and future Wednesday posts). 

The Taylors Visit Italy: Vicenza, Soave, and Verona

We arrived in Vicenza just before dinner.  We decided to go to Portega Vecchia, a ristorante pizzeria that we frequent often. 
 
In the morning, we visited the market in Piazza dei Signori.  I've always loved how the city comes alive on market days.  It was neat to share that with my family.  Michael had never been to the weekly market, so it was a first for him too!  We purchased all the makings for lunch and dinner from the many vendors: veggies, cheese, and seafood. 

After a lunch of caprese salad, bread, and wine we followed the tradition of siesta- afternnoon relaxation.
Later, we ventured back out to the center to enjoy apertivi- food and drink that stimulate your appetite for dinner.  Spritz are the common appertivi here in the north of the boot.  I'll share more about spritz later....

For dinner, Michael and I cooked an Italian-American dish: Venetian Mac-n-Cheese with shrimp and radicchio.  We dined and drank wine, hearing about the previous part of his parents' Italian vacation, while planning the days to come.

The next day, we set out to tour Soave in the morning, Verona in the afternoon and evening.  Soave is a small town famous for it's production of the fine white wine called....Soave.  The center is small and quaint, and it felt sleepy compared to Vicenza and especially Florence.  We climbed to the ruined castle on the hill overlooking the town.  It's surrounded by many, many beautiful vineyards.  After exploring the park and hiking back down, we popped into Cantina di Soave for some tasting.  We tried two different varieties of Soave and a Valpolicella, a local red.  After our purchase, we headed to Verona in a happy mood.

Once in Verona, we ate lunch at another fav, Locanda di Juliette, where we munched on a plentiful variety of crostini.  We wandered the streets, checking out Juliet's balcony and her statue along with the frescoed Piazza Erbe.  We paused many times for cafe, wine, and spritz; meandering here and there.  We ended the evening with another wonderful meal at Pizzeria Du de Cope, in our opinion the absolute best pizza place in north of Italy!