Pedrocchi Cafè Carnival

Mardi Gras just hit Caffè Pedrocchi and the elegant lions have shed their gentlemanly faces today. After an afternoon of non-stop kids doing up carnival, the leoni are suffering from what looks like "cake face".

Entertainers have kept Padua's children occupied with festivities including balloons, music and dancing. They have assaulted the area with their enthusiasm. This comes in the form of a blanket of confetti, spray, dirty costumes and much much more.

Being early evening, I find it amusing to see all the kids dressed up, yet wearing coats that cover up almost all of their costumes. What's left is sprouting bright fabric in the form of skirts. Or face make up. The occasional tiara.

It's winter. It's Carnival. And unfortunately it's over tonight. Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday.

Jewelry Inspired by Caffè Pedrocchi

Padua's most famous café, Caffè Pedrocchi, now has an exhibition running of original jewelry inspired by the coffee shop and space itself. Artist have taken motifs from the walls and windows of the café and themes of coffee consumption to make their pieces.

Visit the first floor showroom and marvel at the pieces. Curated by Francesca Canapa. Organized by Associazione Contemporanea Gioiellodentro. Show runs through July 20th.

"L'arte del Caffè Pedrocchi nel Gioiello Contemporaneo"

(The Art of Caffè Pedrocchi in Contemporary Jewelry)

Exhibition link, scroll down page for English.

Davide Penso, Incontro, glass bracelet with gold filigree

Angelo Verga, Gothicoffee: Don't Throw the Culture, silver ring, resin, coffee grounds

Caffè Pedrocchi Expanding

This is the place referred to by the local saying in Padua, "la città con un santo senza nome, un caffè senza porte e un prato senza erba" (a city with a saint without a name, a café without doors and a field without grass). The saint is Saint Anthony, but everyone here just refers to him as "il santo." The café is Caffè Pedrocchi, pictured above. The field is actually a square called Prato della Valle (Field of the Valley), one of the largest in Europe.

Caffè Pedrocchi commands great historic importance for this town. It was founded 180 years ago and witnessed a critical involvement in Italian revolutions and intellectual activity. (I will discuss this in a later post.)

The no-doors refers to the fact that it is always open to the public. In fact, there is a room, The Green Room, where you can sit quietly and read or do whatever you want that is silent without having to order anything from the bar. It's a great, quiet and elegant refuge between appointments for me sometimes when it's raining and I just want to read a magazine.

The important news now is that the café is expanding. The Museo del Risorgimento is going to move to Palazzo Zuchermann and open up all the upper levels of the historic building. The café plans to expand its seating area upstairs, maybe stay open later in the evening (after 8 p.m.) and build luxury rental spaces as a foresteria for artists, intellectuals, etc.

The city is debating whether they should raise the café's rent after the expansion (and natural increase in revenue). Currently it pays a subsidized Euro 500 ($715)/month while it charges nearly Euro 3 ($5) for a coffee! That rent is what I paid for an ugly 35-square-meter (380 square foot) apartment.

Caffè Pedrocchi link.

Il Mattino article about the subject.