Entries about italy;

Mel is a small village located almost halfway between Belluno and Feltre.

It is so small you can explore it in a couple of hours. Small, but beautiful.

The main square in Mel; piazza Papa Luciani is quite large. Papa Luciani was pope Johannes Paulus I. He was pope for a very short time.

This square is surrounded by several palaces built from the 1500.

Here you see the town hall; built in 1510. Besides it you see the Palazzo delle Contesse. It houses an archaeological museum, the tourist office and some halls for meetings.

There is also the parish church in the square. The Santa Maria Annunziata church. It was built in the 1600.

Another palace you see in piazza Papa Luciani is Casa Franceschi. Long ago it was completely covered with frescoes.

Mel has a couple of restaurants as far as I know. One of these is the Antica Locanda (inn) Cappello. It dates to the XVII century.

This restaurant is also in the main square. It is the orange building you see in this picture.

It was closed when I visited Mel.

Here you see another beautiful palace situated in piazza Papa Luciani; Casa Fulcis (and later Zadra).

Today it houses an ice cream parlour. Also this place was closed the day I was in Mel.

In Mel there is a cafe where you can buy newspapers, magazines and cigarettes, a pharmacy and some other shops, but not many.

There is a small bakery some meters from the square. It is also a grocery shop.

Here you can buy a good cake make with jam or Nutella and various other sweet treats.

Palazzo Pivetta is a palace you can find a little downill from piazza Papa Luciani.

As you can see this palace has an arch. Under this arch you will walk on a Roman road that takes to some other villages.

Mel is really a good place to visit as a day trip from where I live; even if it wasn' t easy to get there!

Me and my partner got lost in the countryside! Not for long.

Gabicce Mare was the second base for my summer holiday. It was chosen by chance.

I visited this town in order to get to Gabicce Monte. Unfortunately I couldn' t get there due to lack of time. So I thought about looking for a room in Gabicce Mare.

This way I should have had more time to visit Gabicce Monte.

Gabicce Mare is a modern sea side resort. It has not an old core.

Spending some time on the beach is one of the things to do in Gabicce.

At the entrance of some beaches there are some paintings. Some of these are real masterpieces in my opinion.

I booked a room for some nights at hotel Paris. It is a nice two stars hotel; even if it is quite old.

I was given a room with three beds and the bathroom en suite.

At hotel Paris they seved a good buffet breakfast with several home made pastries.

Gabicce Monte is a nice village. It is some kilometers from Gabicce Mare. It is part of Gabicce Mare.

In the old times it was a fortified village.

I went to Gabicce Monte by bus.

From Gabicce Monte you can enjoy the view over Gabicce Mare and on some other places.

There are some cafes and restaurants in Gabicce Monte. I think there are even some hotels here.

Gabicce Monte is a small village. It is possible to visit it in a couple of hours.

Here we can read that Gabicce Monte was the birthplace of Girolamo Lanfranco and his son; Giacomo.

They were potters who lived here in the 1500.

I also did a day trip to Gradara from Gabicce Mare. I went there by bus. The journey took around twenty minutes.

Gradara is a Medieval village situated on a hill. It is only six kilometers from Gabicce Mare.

Gradara is a small village, but there is no shortage of cafes and restaurants here.

There are some churches in Gadara. One of these is the XIV century church of saint John the Baptist.

Its main sight is a crucifix sculpted by a friar in the first half on the XVII century.

If you look at the Christ' s face from three defined spots on the floor, you can see its three expressions on its face. Silence, sufference and relief.

There is a castle in Gradara. It was built between the 11th and the 15th centuries.

I did not visit it because I was in Gradara on monday; the closing day.

The castle is where the tragic story of Paolo and Francesca happened.

It was written in the Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri. One of our most famous witers.

Francesca was Giovanni (AKA Giangiotto) Malatesta' s wife. She had a love affair with her husband' s brother, Paolo.

One day, when Giangiotto came home and caught the two lovers together in Francesca' s room he killed them.

Probabably this sad story took place between 1283 and 1285.

The street from the main entrance of the village is quite long and steep.

I hope to re visit Gradara quite soon.

The Gabicce Express train is a way to head to Gabicce Monte and to Gradara.

It is not a comfortable mean of transportation but you can use it if you have children.