Veneto is situated in the North-East side of Italy between Dolomiti mountains
and Adriatic Sea. It extends over a surface of 18378 square kilometres, whose
56% are plains, 14% hills, 30% mountains. It is divided into 7 Provinces -
Venezia, Verona, Padova, Vicenza, Treviso, Rovigo e Belluno. The Regional
Administrative Centre is Venezia.
Veneto is traditionally a region of great attraction to tourists, with the
presence of a high quality centre of interest such as Venice and of itineraries
of great interest from an environmental and artistic point of view. Quite a few
towns in this region would be interesting to visit, and some of them, such as
Marostica, still surrounded by fourteenth century walls, where the annual chess
game is played in the beautiful Piazza del Castello, or Bassano del Grappa, with
its medieval and Renaissance works of art just should not be missed. But then
what is everything else when one has a chance to spend time in Venice, the town
romantic atmosphere of which is long known to the world, whose singular
appearance and wealth of art treasures make it unique. It is criss-crossed by
more than 150 canals and 400 bridges, and is divided into 6 districts known as
`sestieri'. Characteristic buildings look onto hundreds of small squares (campi
and campielli) linked by narrow streets called calli. Monuments, churches and
palaces are everywhere making the time spent here into a magical experience full
of beauty.
The Veneto (Venetia) region has always had a key strategic significance, its
location forming a gateway between the Mediterranean region and northern and
eastern Europe. The area was settled by the Euganei during the Bronze Age, but
it was the Venet peoples, arriving from central Asia in 1000 BC that gave the
area its name. They spread into other areas of northern Europe, and their name
was a descriptive rather than tribal one, held to mean noble or 'shining', and
they were a largely peaceful people. They were adept traders, and, as recorded
by Pliny, were early sellers of amber, particularly to the Greeks and Etruscans
to the south.
The Venets settled along the principal rivers and founded the settlements of
Padua, Vicenza, Verona, Treviso, Altino, Montebelluna, Asolo, and, most
importantly, Este. They were world-famous as horse breeders, and the horse and
the colour blue were their decorative and emblematic symbols; in common with
other Indo-European theologies, the horse was a symbol associated with the
afterlife. The Romans arrived in 200 BC, but theirs was not a forceful invasion,
the Venets preferring to make concessions and arrangements rather than offer
resistance. Under Emperor Augustus the region became part of the Roman Empire -
Decima Regio Venetia et Istria - and was to enjoy a 300 year period of expansion
in both trade and the arts.
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