Italy - Marostica

Not only can I not find any pictures of Marostica; it doesn't even appear to have a dedicated web site.

(They do have a section on the National Cherry site: http://www.cittadelleciliege.it/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=122:comune-di-marostica-vi&catid=29&Itemid=263 )

That seems like a reason not to write about it, but I liked it there. I am just going to write about what we did.

There is an upper and lower castle, and a wall that flows down the hill. A better example of that architectural style might be Soave, where I have not been yet, but it is still impressive here.

We started at the lower castle. The big draw is the piazza, with its giant chessboard. They have a pageant every two years with a life-size chess game, dancing, and fireworks, re-enacting a play about a king wanting to keep his daughter's two suitors peaceful. If that doesn't sound like enough tension, even though both men are pursuing the one daughter, she is in love with only one of them, and her sister is in love with the other.

For the purposes of the pageant this is apparently treated as history. In reality, apparently playing regular-size chess in the piazza became popular with veterans after World War I, and they talked about doing a game with living pieces. The play was written then, but the large board did not get built until after World War II.

We looked at this, and then my guides noticed an English woman getting very irritated with the barista, so they offered me to translate. Actually, the girl understood the woman's order perfectly, she was just offering her other things and chattering in a very friendly manner, which was greatly irritating the Brit. "And that's ALL," she kept repeating. Assuring her that she was getting her coffee - and only her coffee - did not take away the aggravation of having to deal with so much incomprehensible cheer. Well, it was kind of early in the day. Maybe the coffee helped.

We then headed for the upper castle, driving along narrow winding roads. The route was less direct than I would have expected. One thing I remember is passing a sign that I believe said "La Via delle Ciliegie": the Way of the Cherries. I learned later that they have a local cherry variety that they are famous for. What occurred to me at the time was that those trees all along the road must be cherry trees, and it would be very beautiful when they were blooming.

From the upper castle you can look down the hill, and it is a good view. The thing I remember most is that there was a school group there for lunch. It looked like there were about thirty kindergarten students - all in matching uniforms - and it looked like they were being watched by just two nuns. Those seemed like bad odds, but they were so cute.

Anyway, I found it scenic, and a good place to go. I am sure the pageant gets crowded, but I wouldn't mind seeing that some day as well.