Arquà Petrarca and the Jujube Festival

Arquà Petrarca, listed among the "Most Beautiful Villages in Italy", is located in the Euganean Hills, in the province of Padua, and in honour of Francesco Petrarca, who died here in 1374, it was renamed by adding the poet's surname to the original name, Arquà. You climb up towards the village to immerse yourself in a rural setting with a medieval flavour, until you reach the churchyard of the church of S. Maria Assunta, where Petrarch's tomb stands. We then find palaces in the Venetian Gothic style and, surrounded by greenery, Petrarch's house. Arquà Petrarca is a tourist destination all year round, but it comes alive with an ancient splendour on the first two Sundays of October, when the "Jujube Festival" is held, celebrating a fruit now forgotten elsewhere. Also worth tasting is the liqueur made from it, the "brodo di giuggiole".

At the stalls along the streets: pomegranates, old crafts, pumpkins of the strangest shapes, delicious freshly baked rolls stuffed with exquisite sopressa. One tip: arrive early to enjoy at least a peaceful stroll, then wait until the afternoon if you want to admire the flag-throwers.