Sandra, I've wanted to visit Ravenna because the Ravenna artisans were commissioned to do the mosaics in the St. Louis' new cathedral. The result is the largest collection of mosaics in the US. I'd love to see the source of their training and inspiration someday.
I really enjoyed Ravenna. Besides the glorious mosaics, it's a charming small city with a very walkable core, good food, and an easy charm.
Annie, I'm sure I'll be "gob-smacked!" And I must go back through Kathy's trip report to see her photos from Ravenna.
Anne, thanks for the tip. But I have booked at Ferrara's Albergo Annunziata (which Marian liked very much.) They've given me a good price and for 3 nights, I'll probably stick with that. Still, I can never resist looking at apartments....
Candi, with your ability to travel, I'm sure you'll get there.
I have visited Ravenna once before I had a digital camera. I would love to go back to get some great photos of the beautiful mosaics. I am sure you will really enjoy your visit to Ravenna. The churches are amazing!
Ravenna's high on my wish list too. I enjoyed reading Kathy (Trek Capri)'s trip report about the day trip she took there from Venice a couple of years ago. Those mosaics look pretty gobsmacking! :)
The owners are an Australian woman and her Italian husband. She seemed very friendly in our email exchange.
Ah Sandra, I am dying to see Ravenna and those gorgeous mosaics!! Do you have a place picked out yet for your few days in Ferrara? I had considered staying there last October, and had thought this apartment sounded great:
This sounds like a plan. I would love to visit Ravenna too.
Posted to by Sandrac on February 6, 2009 11:08 AM
I believe that I will make day trips to both Padua and to Ravenna, from either Bologna (where I'll stay for a week) or from Ferrara, where I'll spend 3 days and nights. I'll have to carefully check the Trenitalia schedules to see what times and routes make the most sense.
Eight early Christian monuments in Ravenna, which were built over 1500 years, have been inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List. Clearly, I'll have a lot to see during my visit there.
Ravenna itself has a fascinating history. It once served as the seat of the Western Roman Empire and later the Kingdom of the Ostrogoths and the Exarchate of Ravenna. It's a bit unclear who the earliest settlers were, perhaps the Umbrians. Ravenna originally consisted of homes built on piles on a series of small islands in a marshy lagoon , something like Venice's development some centuries later. In 49 BC, Ravenna was the site where Julius Caesar gathered his forces before crossing the Rubicon. The city later become an important military harbour, and remained a seaport on the Adriatic until the early Middle Ages (which helps to explain the Eastern influences in the city.)
San Vitale has been described as among the most important monuments of early Christian art in Italy, and is perhaps best known for its magnificent mosaics, strongly influenced by Byzantine artists. This, I find fascinating. In fact, the Byzantine influence reportedly dominates much of the architecture throughout Ravenna. The basilica, built on a central octagonal plan, was founded by Giulianus Argentarius, commissioned by Bishop Ecclesius and consecrated by the Archbishop Maximian in 548.
The above photo is taken from the website of Ravennamosaici, a wonderful source of information about the city of Ravenna, its history and -- of course -- its enormous wealth of stunning mosaics. (That, and the other two photos I have borrowed from this site, are taken inside the Basilica of San Vitale.)
Ravenna is another city that has received absolutely rave reviews and is at the very top of my list of places that I have to see when I travel to Italy in June.
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Everyone Raves about Ravenna (A Journey of a Thousand Miles Begins With ... Too Much Luggage)
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