Interrail throughout Italy

Milan - Padua - Verona - Venice - Florence - Saint Gimignano - Sienna - Pisa - Naples - Pompei - Amalfi Coast - Capri - Assisi - Rome - Tivoli - Monaco

Padua is located in the Veneto province, in the route Milan-Venice. It is an university city, that founded its university in 1222. For this reason this is a quiet place in summer.
We chose Padua as our sleeping town for next days, as we thought that it could be a smart base for the visits to the nearby towns of Verona and Venice (1 h. far by train). In my opinion Padua is a nice choice since it is much easier to find accommodation than in Verona or Venice (and cheaper) and you don't have to worry about your baggage for all the days. I would like to recommend the hostel where we slept, situated near the Basilica of Saint Anthony, as it was cheap and the staff was really kind. It was called "the Pilgrim".

Padua keeps a very important cultural patrimony. Of course I must start with the huge Basilica of Saint Anthony , that stands out due to its numerous Byzantine domes. The present basilica is the result after 3 reconstructions between 1238 and 1310. In the interior there are some good works, such as some Tiziano's frescoes (1511) or the major altar's crucifix, statutes and bronzes made by Donatello (1444-1448).
It is a world famous pilgrimage as it keeps the saint's tomb. It is incredible the amount of pictures and notes with messages and prayers that the pilgrims leave there, and you can see them.

There are different interesting spots across the city.

The Scrovegni's chapel decorated with some of the most notable frescoes of Giotto (1302-1305).
The Palace of the Region (1218 and reconstructed in 1306). We didn't get into.

There is a busy and hubbub daily street market nearby the palace and also you find close the Tower of the Astronomic Clock from 1344.
The cathedral was built from 16th to 18th centuries. The nearby baptistery , from 12th century, also shows some fine and well preserved frescoes, masterpiece from 14th century. If you would like to see only one of the chapels (you have to pay to enter in both), I would recommend the Scrovegni's chapel.

Prato della Valle is a broad square whose origin was a Roman theatre. It has a monumental air. There is a green elliptic island surrounded by a canal that is flanked with 78 statues of important figures. At the extreme you distinguish the great Basilica of Saint Justine , from 16th century.

In addition to these relevant spots, I loved the walk through the streets, the ancient buildings, palaces, walls and towers.

We missed a visit to the ancient university, but it was far away from the centre. It was really important in the past (as well as nowadays) and allowed the town and the arts growth on it. Galileo taught many lessons here.

I would suggest day and a half or even two days to appreciate the city in depth, since an only day seems a little pressed, but it depends on you.