We arrived in Venice in the early afternoon, checked into our hotel and immediately headed back to the train station to visit Padua. Padua is only a 30-minute train trip from Venice and trains leave frequently. Since there was a long line at the ticket window and the next train was leaving shortly, we decided to try the self-service machines for the first time - quite adventurous for us. After a couple of missteps, we figured out the machine and it turned out to be pretty easy to purchase the train tickets this way. Even with our errors it was much faster than standing in line.

The train fare between Venice and Padua is only five euros roundtrip; cheaper than a ride on the vaporetto. The only tricky part is to remember to validate your ticket before getting on the train. On the return trip we forgot! We knew better, but we were a little late getting back to the station and messed up. It could have been a 25-euro fine, but we were fortunate and only got a stern lecture and a “don't do it again” warning.

With only a few hours to visit Padua, we planned to see the Basilica of St. Anthony and the Scrovegni Chapel. Before we left home, we purchased tickets on-line and made a reservation to see the chapel. Since our Scrovegni reservation was for early evening, we headed for the other end of town to see the basilica. Padua is a beautiful, lively university town. It was an enjoyable walk to the basilica with plenty of opportunities to grab a bite to eat or a gelato. We had fun people watching and visiting the different squares along the way.

The Basilica of St. Anthony is very impressive with it's redbrick exterior, domes, and towers. You can really see the Byzantine influence on the architectural style of the building. Outside is a bronze statue of a life-size horse and rider by Donatello. The interior is equally as impressive with bronze statues around the high altar, St. Anthony's tomb, the Chapel of the Reliquaries (with St. Anthony's tongue), and a small museum.

Besides the grandeur of the basilica, the memory we will always treasure from our visit is the voice of a Nun singing during the mass. Her voice was so beautiful – clear and strong. The power of her voice made you stand perfectly still and listen with both your ears and heart. It was a real surprise to see her up close and realize that she must be in her seventies.

The Scrovegni Chapel was a special experience. Frescoes by the Florentine painter Giotto di Bondone (Giotto) cover the inside of the chapel. Forty frescoes showing the story of Mary and Jesus’ lives decorate every inch of the chapel’s sidewalls. They were so life-like and different from the typical medieval representations of holy figures. The chapel is not a monumental building and has a much more intimate feeling than we had expected. The Scrovegni family constructed it in an attempt to atone for their sinful occupation – money lending.

A visit to the chapel starts with fifteen minutes in an air lock to keep the temperature and humidity in the chapel stabilized, followed by a fifteen or twenty minute visit inside the chapel. Groups are small for each entry time, so it is easy to view and enjoy the frescoes. I wish we had had our Rick Steves' guidebook with us to read about some of the frescoes, but we had to check all our personal belongings.

Our visit to Padua was short, but memorable, and we are very pleased that we were able to fit it into our itinerary.