Sunday, October 28, 2012

ASOLO, CANOVA...

In Asolo, about an hour's drive from Venice, there is a Cipriani hotel with a beautiful garden you can have a spritz in. 
With a view...



That is breathtaking...
And a pomegranate orchard...







We went for a stroll around the town...

The place we had lunch at was called Al Bacaro and was really perfect for an early autumn day. I ate lots of polenta. The restaurant didn't have very photogenic lighting and was all dark and wooden inside. I liked it so much, but my photos just didn't do it justice. 

Then we drove to Possagno, to the Gipsoteca di Canova, the museum which houses the original plaster cast models of Antonio Canova's sculptures. The plaster works are housed in a completely plaster white space, with an additional wing designed by Carlo Scarpa. The whole effect was really striking. (You can just see the dots all over the Three Graces here, to work out the proportion/measurements.) 







You're not supposed to take photos there. Oops.

Next to the Gipsoteca is Canova's house. The garden was my favourite bit again - I think I'm turning into my granny (Granny B not Granny Dragon for those familiar with my ancestry). Granny B would've loved it there. 

To be continued...
That's enough of me being the Veneto region tourism board for now - we also went to Canova's Temple and then drove around the prosecco growing region of Valdobbiadene, stopping to buy some cases at a sweet, tiny winery called Frozza.   

{All photos taken by me.}

7 comments:

charlotte said...

These shots are all divine and I want to go there.
The English winter can suck it.

P R I M O E Z A said...

you just reminded me that i read about the canova museum about 20 years ago and thought i'd like to go. still haven't made it...
love your pics, especially of the stroll around town.

Janelle Eastwood said...

Can't complain about an English winter, but I'm in Seattle, so I sympathize with similar sentiments. These pictures warm me straight through.

random cat said...

i love it how you take me out of touristy italy. as i'm waiting for some money to pile up and then start traveling i got tired of the usual stuff in italy and paris that i know i'm gonna see before i've even seen them. and your posts make me lust for places like this. i love these posts.

i hate word verification :)

Claire said...

Charlotte - it sure can.

Elizabeth - you'd love it there, I hope you get to go.

Janelle - yes, that's why I was looking through my photos yesterday - it's so cold and damp here and they had the same effect on me.

random cat - ha, word verification is becoming harder and harder - maybe we're becoming robots! Thank you - I'm lucky that I have friends from there who know about these wonderful, lesser known places and take me there, otherwise I would never go to them. But glad I can then share them here!

Tiffany said...

That first photo is beautiful. I love all the little things on that plate.

silviabes said...

it's interesting to see a foreigner's perspective on Asolo!

i just posted about the town myself ;)