The piazza in Portogruaro with its distinctive town hall.
A city on the mainland with "Porto" in its name - how is that possible? It got its name (Porto = port, Gruaro = crane, the city's emblem) because the area between Portogruaro and Venice used to be a marshland. Portogruaro was the first city to have, so to speak, solid ground under its feet. As a result, all goods traded via Venice were unloaded by ship in Portogruaro and transported from there by cart across the Alps.
With its historic center featuring Renaissance palaces in the Gothic-Venetian style and a particularly impressive town hall dating back to 1300, Portogruaro is simply a must-visit if you're looking to enjoy a sunny, beautiful, and relaxing day. Take a stroll through the piazza, grab an ice cream at Bar Roma, and take a leisurely walk past the old watermill in the historic center.
Portogruaro
Summer Music Festival
By the way, this is also where the annual (July–September) Portogruaro Festival takes place - a truly worthwhile and commendable event (with best regards from Lorenzo Da Ponte). It's quite possible to fall under the spell of this little town - at least you wouldn't be the first. So be warned, in the best sense of the word: good accommodations in a central location (Hotel Spessotto) aren't hard to come by.
Grazie a Bervini.it
Wonderful celebrations
for no particular reason
If you don't have a reason to celebrate, you just make one up. So, in addition to the traditional festivals, there's a whole host of smaller celebrations with no real occasion - even if it's just because you like to eat cheese or ice cream. And so, with an appetite, you celebrate the Festa di Gelato, the Festa del Formaggio, and of course, the Ham Festival is a must.
Even if you search in vain for a deeper religious motivation here, it's still a nice occasion to get to know the region's culinary delicacies better.
Lorenzo da Ponte
Photo creditLorenzo Da Ponte
Librettist and Womanizer
It hasn't produced any truly prominent sons so far, though it's worth mentioning Lorenzo Da Ponte, Mozart'slibrettist, to whom we owe such beautiful works as *Le nozze di Figaro*, *Don Giovanni*, and *Così fan tutte*.
Da Ponte was ordained a priest here at the Collegio in Portogruaro. But that didn't help him much when he was later exiled - or rather, thrown out - of Venice. Rumors abound, including tales of wild affairs with women...
In dubio pro libretto: Unfortunately, we have no concrete evidence to support this.