what to see in mantua...

mantova - mantua. italian capital of culture 2016

Mantova, Mantua in English, is the Italian Capital of Culture this year.
In 2007, Mantua's centro storico (old town) was declared by UNESCO to be a World Heritage Site. Mantua's historic power and influence under the Gonzaga family has made it one of the main artistic, cultural, and especially musical hubs of Northern Italy and the country as a whole. Mantua is noted for its significant role in the history of opera; the city is also known for its architectural treasures and artifacts, elegant palaces, and the medieval and Renaissance cityscape. It is the place where the composer Monteverdi premiered his opera L'Orfeo and where Romeo was banished in Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet.

market place

Mantua's center holds a big market place on every Thursday mornings from 8 until 13. All the city center's piazzas are full of different things from vegetables, fried fish to clothes and decorative objects.

palazzo te

Palazzo Te is a palace in the suburbs of Mantua, Italy. It is a fine example of the mannerist style of architecture, the acknowledged masterpiece of Giulio Romano. 
Palazzo del Te is constructed 1524–34 for Federico II Gonzaga, Marquess of Mantua. He decided in 1524 to build a pleasure palace, or Villa Suburbana. The site chosen was that of the family's stables at Isola del Te on the fringe of the marshes just outside Mantua's city walls.

teatro bibiena

Teatro Bibiena was opened officially on 3 December 1769. A few weeks later, on 16 January 1770, thirteen-year-old Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart played a concert here, with resounding success. 
His father, Leopold Mozart, wrote about the theatre: "In all my life, I have never seen anything more beautiful of its kind".

​Via Accademia 47

ristorante marechiaro

Ristorante Marechiaro is located near the music high school and in Largo XXIV Maggio 7. You can eat all kinds of food from risotto and pasta to pizza and salads. Their speciality is pizza in teglia, a big "pan pizza" that usually is enough for 3 persons. They also serve good frutti di mare, sea food. 
We will be having lunch here every day 13-14 (except for Wednesday, when they close)

lakeside

Although you can't swim in the lakes around Mantua, you can enjoy long walks by the lakeside and catch a boat that takes you around the lakes. 

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palazzo ducale

The Ducal Palace is a group of buildings in Mantua, built between the 14th and the 17th century mainly by the noble family of Gonzaga as their royal residence in the capital of their Duchy.
The Gonzaga family lived in the palace from 1328 to 1707, when the dynasty died out.
In 1998, a hidden room was discovered by Palace scholars, led by musicologist Paula Bezzutti. The room is thought to have been used for performances of Monteverdi's music in the late 16th century.
The entrance of the palace is from Piazza Sordello