Showing posts with label River Po. Show all posts
Showing posts with label River Po. Show all posts

Sunday, February 23, 2020

ITALY - Mantua's Palazzo Ducale

La Bella Vita's Italian River Cruise
Visit Palazzo Ducale in Mantua



A highlight of  LA BELLA VITA's Italian river cruise is a visit to the Lombardy city of Mantua. It is known by Italians as "La Bella Addormentata" (Sleeping Beauty). Surrounded by artificial lakes created to fortify the city in the Middle Ages, the city has been relatively untouched by modern development. Its old town was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007 in recognition of its Renaissance town planning.

Palazzo Ducale

Palazzo Ducale

Mantua is dominated by the Palazzo Ducale de Mantova, or the Ducal Palace. This colossal complex of rooms, towers, churches, and gardens was the residence of the powerful Gonzaga family for 400 years. They ruled as the Dukes of Mantua until 1707. At 34,000m², the only residence in Italy that can claim to be larger is the Vatican. The guided tour on La Bella Vita's Classic Cruise gives you the opportunity to explore beautiful Baroque and neo-classical buildings, such as the following historical gems…

Ducale Palace Gardens

Corte Vecchia

The Corte Vecchia is the oldest part of the complex. From it you can access the Palazzo del Capitano, linked to the Magna Domus around the year 1300 with a beautiful arcade. In the same century, a series of stunning Arthurian frescos glorifying the serving duke, Gianfrancesco Gonzaga, was painted by Pisanello. In the 1960s these incredible 700-year old paintings were rediscovered and fragments of the frescos and their preliminary drawings can still be seen in the palace.

Camera Picta


Another impressive room in the palace complex is the Camera Picta (Painted Room), also known as the Bridal Chamber. The walls are the canvas for a Renaissance masterpiece by Andrea Mantegna, painted between 1465 and 1474, which depicts the triumphs of the whole Gonzaga family. Make sure you raise your eyes to the ceiling, where you’ll see one of the earliest examples of an illusionistic di sotto in sù painting; an oculus (opening in the dome) reveals a blue sky with cherubs playing around its rim.

Isabella d’Este’s Studiolo

Isabella d’Este, who was Marchesa of Mantua around the turn of the sixteenth century, is known as the First Lady of the Renaissance. Her studiolo in the palace – a place to display and enjoy her collection of antiques, paintings and books – was a Renaissance retreat from the outside world. It has unfortunately lost all of its treasures to museums, but still boasts beautiful dark blue, starry walls.

With so much more to see and experience at the Palazzo Ducale, art and architecture lovers will savor this fascinating segment of La Bella Vita's Italian river cruise.




About The Italian Hotel Barge Bella Vita

Italian Hotel Barge La Bella Vita

La Bella Vita

La Bella Vita is a stylish 20-passenger vessel with a typically modern Italian interior, reflected in the use of vibrant colors throughout to create an atmosphere of casual relaxation. There is an inviting bar area in which to enjoy a glass of Prosecco and a spacious dining room with louver doors that open to give a perfect view as you are served delicious Italian specialties and wines.

There are two main deck junior suites and eight lower deck staterooms, all air-conditioned and with en suite facilities. The upper deck has a huge sun deck with a large canopy and comfortable loungers to relax and watch the world drift by.

Enjoy delicious regional cuisine, fine Italian wines and the services of an attentive crew that will make this an unforgettable cruise. 

La Bella Vita offers 6-night, all-inclusive private charters, as well as cabin cruises. Themed cruises such as family, golf, opera, and wine appreciation are available for private charters.





Discover the Waterways of Northern Italy



Contact Paradise Connections Yacht Charters to book LA BELLA VITA
View La Bella Vita's online brochure
Visit our website for more info on our barges and barging: www.BargeCharters.com
 

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ITALY - Discover Byron’s Po at Villa Ca’Zen


Discover Byron's Po at Villa Ca'Zen

River cruising is one of the most immersive and relaxing ways to explore a destination, and the tranquil waterways of Europe offer a plethora of opportunities to enjoy this much-loved mode of slow travel. In Italy, the Po River flows 650km through the north of the country and provides the perfect setting from which to discover its landscape, people and history in the most delightful way.

Villa Ca'Zen

One popular stop on LA BELLA VITA's Italian river cruise itinerary through the Veneto region is the lovely Villa Ca'Zen, a 17th-century villa in the Po Delta Nature Reserve, the country's biggest regional park. The villa's long and interesting history is inextricably linked to one of Britain's greatest poets: Lord Byron.

Early History

In the early 1700s, many wealthy Venetian families established grand estates throughout the Po Delta region, using the area for shooting, fishing and crop cultivation. The Ca'Zen estate was built by the Zen family around that time and is situated on the site of a small stone tabernacle dedicated to Saint Margherita dating back to 1459.

The original estate included the Venetian-style villa, along with a chapel, stables, and a portico. The chapel has a beautiful aspect directly facing the River Po and contains two important statues from the famous Bolognese School that depict Mary and the Archangel Gabriel during the Annunciation. In the early 1800s, when the estate passed from the Zen family's hands to the Marchesi Guiccioli of Ravenna, two extra wings were added to the villa, along with some outlying cottages and several large granary barns.

Byron's Muse

The history of the villa took on a romantic twist through its association with Lord Byron, perhaps the most romantic of all the great Romantic poets. Byron fell deeply in love with an Italian beauty, Contessa Teresa Gamba who, unfortunately, was already very spoken for as the wife of Alessandro Guiccioli.

Despite her marriage, the attraction was instant and mutual and they became lovers. Angered by their liaison, her husband sent her away to languish in the family estate (Ca'Zen) – which was far from the parties and social life of Venice – in an attempt to place distance between the poet and Teresa. Alas for Guiccioli, Byron instead pursued his passion and travelled secretly to the estate to be with Teresa. Whether it was due to his own amorous state or the inspiring landscape itself, it was from here that the poet penned some of his most celebrated and beautiful works, many of which were dedicated to his ladylove and the river.

Beyond Byron

In the ensuing years, the estate was taken over by the Casalicchio-Avanzo family, and it was the wife of Cavalier Pericle Avanzo, Elaine Avanzo Westropp Bennett, who suggested using part of the country house to rent out to visitors looking for some bucolic respite. Its location in the heart of the environmental reserve is ideal for a host of outdoor pursuits. Today, the villa is also very popular as a wedding venue.

The romance, history, culture and landscape of this relatively unspoilt region combine to create a truly memorable experience both on and off the water.



About The Italian Hotel Barge Bella Vita

Italian Hotel Barge La Bella Vita

La Bella Vita

La Bella Vita is a stylish 20-passenger vessel with a typically modern Italian interior, reflected in the use of vibrant colors throughout to create an atmosphere of casual relaxation. There is an inviting bar area in which to enjoy a glass of Prosecco and a spacious dining room with louvre doors that open to give a perfect view as you are served delicious Italian specialities and wines.

There are two main deck junior suites and eight lower deck staterooms, all air-conditioned and with en suite facilities. The upper deck has a huge sun deck with a large canopy and comfortable loungers to relax and watch the world drift by.

Enjoy delicious regional cuisine, fine Italian wines and the services of an attentive crew that will make this an unforgettable cruise. 

La Bella Vita offers 6-night, all-inclusive private charters, as well as cabin cruises. Themed cruises such as family, golf, opera, and wine appreciation are available for private charters.





Discover the Waterways of Northern Italy



Contact Paradise Connections Yacht Charters to book LA BELLA VITA
View La Bella Vita's online brochure
Visit our website for more info on our barges and barging: www.BargeCharters.com
 

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