Udine

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View of the Loggia di San Giovanni from Udine Castle.


One hour’s drive from Trieste, Udine is a beautiful small city with a medieval and renaissance centre, said to be founded by Atilla the Hun. After parking the car, as it turned out illegally, we headed to the 14 C Cathedral, gothic in appearance with the interior remodelled in the baroque style . The real gem is the adjacent bell tower and Baptistry that houses the Cathedral museum, in which there is a magnificent finery monument to Saint Bernard, with carved scenes from his life and gruesome death. We were fortunate that the man in charge on the day was an enthusiast for the works and provided us with a detailed explanation.

                                           The Cathedral of Santa Maria Annunziata

                                             Interior Octagonal Baptistry


                                           Finery monument of Saint Bernard.
                                              The Octagonal Bell tower that houses the Cathedral museum.

                                          Execution of Saint Bernard

                                               14 C fresco: Susanna and the Elders

Architecturally a combination of Venetian and Veronese styles it was a delight to wander the town through the medieval lanes, the beautiful renaissance central Piazza della Libertà with its pink and white marble loggia to the hilltop Udine castle. Udine is distinctly Italian in contrast with Trieste’s Habsburg heritage and is home to a large body of work of the Venetian  18 C rococo painter Gianbattista Tiepolo. We visited the Diocesan museum (Tiepolo Gallery) where some of his fresco masterpieces are located. A dazzling collection.

 

Lion Loggia
                      Piazza della Libertà 



                                            Ceiling masterpiece Tiepolo.

After a disappointing lunch where we waited more than 40 minutes for a mere toasted sandwich, we climbed to the Udine castle, which is home to several museums, including the modern art gallery. Unfortunately we had no time to do it justice so enjoyed the view from the terrace over the city and the beautiful  16 C Loggia di San Giovanni. We made sure to be present for the hourly bell ringing from the Clock tower which features two carved bronze moors at its pinnacle, striking the hour between them.


                                                  Moor bell ringers.

Sixty euros poorer after a hefty parking fine, we drove back to beautiful Trieste for our final evening in that stunning city.



                                      Last dinner in Trieste.

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