Shop For Shoes In Padova, Italy

Padova is a very old city with stone bridges over canals and vine encrusted medieval city walls behind beautiful brick buildings. There are even some Roman ruins south of the train station. The city is situated along the Bachiglione River, between Verona and Venice. If you find yourself wandering about that train station (which can be a dangerous place) walk south immediately to the oldest part of the city.

Padova is an amazing place if you like 13th century architecture and art history. Its one of the Petrie dishes in which the Italian Renaissance was spawned. I recommend visiting the Palazzo della Ragione, built in 1285 by the architect Leonardo Bocaleca. Admission is four euros and there's many stairs to climb, but the upstairs bathrooms are probably the best in the city.

Inside the great hall there's over two hundred early medieval paintings on all four walls. I'm not kidding - it's overwhelming. The exterior architecture is amazing too, yet the western side is pretty much eclipsed by the Volto della Corda which was a pillory where prisoners were sentenced to be punished by ropes.

On Saturday the biggest attraction for savvy tourists should be the market fair that occurs in the town centre. The core of the city is an otherwise tranquil place filled with empty grass lawns, statues and fountains, but every Saturday morning its miraculously transformed into a cornucopia of commercial activity.

Veteran travelers know the best bargains are found in those places where the locals shop, and such places tend to be crowded. This is definitely true of the Padova Sat Market near the old town centre.

Tents filled with high quality Italian shoes dominate the west side of this trade fair. The shoes are made in Italy, and they smell like new leather.