Bassano Del Grappa
Casa Franci’s location is strategic for visiting various places rich in art and history.
In Bassano del Grappa, the nearest town, you can see the famous Ponte Vecchio (also known as Ponte degli Alpini) built in 1209 by Andrea Palladio, and the historical centre with artefacts and works that speak of the various dominions: the Roman dominion from the middle of the 2nd century B.C., the medieval dominion under the Ezzelini and Visconti families, and then the Serenissima dominion from 1404 to 1800 (in Piazza Libertà you can admire the column with the Lion of St. Mark). During these four centuries of peace and prosperity, goldsmiths’ and textile (wool, silk and skin) activities flourished, as well as artistic ones. In the 1500s the Da Ponte family of painters, nicknamed ‘I Bassano’, operated, and in the 1700s the Remondini family made the name of Bassano famous throughout Europe through their publishing activity.
Bassano Del Grappa
Bassano was the scene of fighting in both World War I and World War II, of which there is still evidence of hangings in the avenues. This is why Bassano is linked to Monte Grappa, where the 23,000 soldiers who fell in the First World War are buried in the ossuary, and to Asiago, where the bodies of the combatants of the Great War are also collected in a large shrine. In Bassano you can also visit the Civic Museum, Villa Angarano San Giuseppe, Villa Rezzonico, Villa Ca’ Erizzo where the writer Hemingway also stayed, Villa Giusti, and the Pretorio, Sturm, Bonaguro, Agostinelli, and Roberti palaces. Napoleon stayed in the latter during the Italian Campaign.
Marostica
A few kilometres west of Bassano is Marostica, which is also medieval in character. The walls, upper and lower castle dating back to 1312 are still visible today. Marostica is world famous for the chess game with living characters that takes place in the town square every two years.
There are also signs of Venetian rule in this town, such as the statue of St Mark’s Lion in the chess square.
Cittadella
For lovers of ancient architecture, 20 minutes from Casa Franci is Cittadella, the only walled city in Europe to have a medieval patrol walkway in an elliptical shape that can be visited every day with an evocative 15-metre-high path that allows you to immerse yourself in the history of the era.
Castelfranco Veneto
With a short drive you can reach Castelfranco, also a walled city with a castle in excellent condition. It was founded between 1195 and 1199 by the municipality of Treviso, willing to guard the border between Padua and Vicenza.
In fact, its position is such that it is close to four provincial capitals: Padua, Treviso, Venice and Vicenza.
The birthplace of the painter Giorgione, it preserves his ancient residence and in a chapel of the cathedral you can admire the famous Pala di Castelfranco painted by him.
Borso
From Casa Franci, a mere five minutes’ drive north takes you to Borso, a small municipality that is home to a number of different sporting disciplines, the most important of which at a European level is paragliding, which is widespread here thanks to the favourable current conditions for practising this sport. The morphological position of the area and the position of the Grappa massif are decisive in creating ascending thrusts known as ‘thermals’, exploited by pilots to gain heights above the take-off points with long flight hours, and for an almost uninterrupted season. Other sports that can be practised thanks to an infinite number of marked trails are trekking, mountain biking, Nordic walking and horseback riding. Climbing enthusiasts, on the other hand, can train in the climbing spot in Valle Santa Felicita. Borso is also famous for ceramics, for the cultivation of ‘Bisi’, a variety of peas protected by a registered trademark and logo, and for the art of pipe-making that has made it world famous over the years. In the locality of Boscon stands a large beech tree with a circumference of 3.2 metres and a height of 28 metres. It is one of the 22,000 protected monumental Italian trees, and the 16th in the province of Treviso.
Possagno
For those who love architecture, Possagno offers much. It is the birthplace of Antonio Canova (considered to be the greatest exponent of Neoclassical sculpture) and preserves the temple he designed and the Gipsoteca where casts of his works are kept, all of which can be visited. After his death, his half-brother Giovanni Battista Sartori-Canova, with part of the artist’s inheritance, had a boarding school built for poor children: the Cavanis Institute, now used as a school and still in operation.
Fiume Brenta
Skirting the River Brenta along the SS47 state road at Solagna we find several rafting
centres offering a wide range of river activities of pure adrenalin fun. In Valstagna, on the
other hand, the naturalistic complex of the Oliero caves is very suggestive and can be
visited every day.
