Famous Before Rome, Asolo Is an Exquisitely Cute Mountain Borgo.
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| Arcaded Street in Asolo with shops and restaurants. Credit: A Path To Lunch |
The little town of Asolo can only exist in Italy where a remote village can have a seemingly infinite history filled with famous names and unlikely events. Where the beautiful is so casually achieved that the visitor is both heartened that it exists and saddened that the visual feast is not moveable.
Nicknamed the 'City of a Hundred Horizons' for its mountain settings by no less than the poet Carducci, it's one of the 'Borghi più belli d'Italia'. Founded by pre-Roman tribes, it's mentioned by Pliny, and its citizens were joined to the Roman tribe Claudia. The history since then reads like a never-ending opera with a cast including Hungarians wrecking the town, a Synod, a Pope, the pitiless murder of local Jewish families, a hyperactive Impresario, a theater being moved to Florida, and more. So come here - any place good enough for Robert Browning, the actress Eleonora Duse, the explorer Freya Stark, and the violinist Wilma Neruda deserves your visit and ours.
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| Old houses with arcades, Asolo A Path To Lunch |
The main draw is visual - quintessential old streets, a classic piazza, cute homes beautifully and randomly arranged.
For attractions there are the ruins of an amphitheater (in the Villa Freya) and of an aqueduct, as well as a 12th century Rocca (a fortified castle on a hill).
There's also the Castle of Queen Caterina Cornaro, now home to the Eleonora Duse theatre, with its attractive inner court. The Palazzo della Ragione now houses the city's museum. The cathedral, built in 1747, has a notable altarpiece.
There are also several smaller churches to wander through, each with a treasure or two.
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| Local Osteria, Asolo Credit: A Path To Lunch |
Excellent Official Asolo Website
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| Asolo's Winged Lion of St. Mark. Credit: A Path To Lunch |
Bassano del Grappa Hotel al Castello Our choice for both good walking access to the old center and easy parking.
Bassano del Grappa - Villa Stecchino Highly rated for a relaxing stay about 2 miles from the old town.
Bassano del Grappa - Relais nel Castello We stayed in this nice apartment in the old town. Parking is in a free lot about 300 meters away.
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