Friday 23rd November 2007

It rained all day yesterday and as we went to bed, it was still raining. However, it stopped raining during the night and, just after 7 o'clock when I woke, there was no rain and I had high hopes for the day. Approximately one minute before the alarm sounded, it started to rain gently and hopes evaporated.
The good news was that today we can see the lake and the other coast fro the campsite, so it is clearer, but still raining. After breakfast, the rain eases and then stops so we decide to adopt Plan A and head for Mantova (Mantua) and then on to Cremona for the night.
Jane has decided that we must leave Mantova by 14:30 – I don't believe that it is practical, but I don't say anything. Given that we don't park in Mantova until 12:30, 14:30 is definitely not practical and Jane accepts this. Mantova is shrouded in mist, bordering on fog and there are certainly no views to be seen down the river. However, the view of the town as we cross the River Mincio is impressive and we are keen to investigate it.
The motorhome car park is next to the monumental cemetery on the outskirts of the town and we have to catch a bus into the centre. Tickets for Italian buses normally have to be bought in tobacconists shops but they can also be purchased on the bus for a higher price. We had no choice but to buy the ticket on the bus. The bus driver acknowledged the request and asked to wait “one minute please” but, arriving in the centre, we still hadn't paid and attempting to pay the driver, he simply wished us “arrivederci”. We made sure that we bought some tickets for the return journey.
It still wasn't raining when we made our way to the Palazzo Ducale and, given that we had no map of the town, the Garmin satnav in pedestrian mode was very useful in guiding us.
Lunch was a hastily eaten ice cream (the best chocolate cherry ice cream that I have ever had) and some pieces of delicious Sbrisolona, a local, very large (10 cm?), thick biscuit made with whole and ground almonds.
We bought a combined ticket for the castle and the Palazzo and went to the castle first. This housed an exhibition of modern sculpture and drawings that we found uninspiring and also some impressive 15th century frescoes by Mantegna, Raphael's star pupil. For conservation reasons, only 20 people are allowed in the room and there is a time limit of 5 minutes for viewing the frescoes and, although this was not being enforced (there were only 3 other people there), 5 minute was sufficient. Although they were impressive, we have seen much better.
So, there was not as much to see at the castle as we expected, the Palazzo Ducale was quite the opposite! It was enormous and whenever we thought we were getting to the end, a whole load more rooms appeared. It was also freezing cold – there was no heating and the damp cold sunk into the bones. The paintings were very good and the ceilings were ornate and beautiful. They represented nearly 400 years of ownership by the Gonzaga dynasty before the city was sacked by the Habsbergs in 1708. However, after the first 20 massive frescoes showing naked frolicking females and puttis (those very annoying plump cherub-like figures), it does become a little tedious. We met no other visitors as we walked around the Palazzo and it must have been very boring and very cold for the large number of staff that they had on duty guarding the rooms. It was very noticeable that they were all wrapped up in many layers and constantly on the move trying to keep warm.
It started raining again as we were making our way back to the car park and during the 90 minute journey to Cremona, the rain increased in intensity. As I write this at 22:00, it is still pouring and we are glad that we are parked on asphalt rather than glass. We hope for better weather tomorrow, but without any great conviction.
Photos: None.