best european square
Feb 17th, 2003, 04:30 PM
#2
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Just a bit of trivia, Red Square in Moscow is the largest square in the world. The second largest square is in Cesky Budejovice in the Czech Republic, the same town where the original Budweiser beer "Budvar" is brewed. Having been to one and not the other, my vote is for Cesky Budejovice, although the square is Cesky Krumlov is also interesting.
Feb 17th, 2003, 05:02 PM
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The square in Krakow is vey large and the textile house with the individual flea market stalls makes for some fun shopping. Also some very nice restaurants on the square!<BR><BR>I though it was the large st squarein Europe, oh well!<BR><BR>US
Feb 17th, 2003, 05:15 PM
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I have to say though that the square in Prague is my favorite. <BR><BR>The clock, the tower, the Tyne church steeples, good old Jan Hus on the square,the baroque church in one corner and the colors make it outstanding. Plus inexpensive great beer is available!<BR><BR>US
Feb 17th, 2003, 05:58 PM
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I loved the big Market Square in Krakow! And I'd love to see the square in Brussels with the flower carpet. But that music at night in St. Mark's in Venice makes it hard to beat -- especially for night time.
Feb 17th, 2003, 06:13 PM
#12
StCirq, I agree about Aigues Mortes, but putting it into the same competition as Red Square or St Marks is a bit of a stretch. <BR><BR>For a sense of place, I have to vote for Trafalgar Square, with Palace (Hermitage) Square in St Petersburg a close second. But Krakow, Moscow, Brussels and especially St Marks are stunning examples of great spaces. I studied long ago how St Marks morphed and changed over the period of a thousand years before ending up as it appears now. <BR><BR>For inspiration, I have to say that the main square in Warsaw needs mentioning - restored exactly to its prewar appearance after being utterly leveled by the Nazis.
Feb 18th, 2003, 02:51 AM
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Our first evening in Venice, we wanted to get away from the tourist area (our hotel was near S. Lucia station). So we just started wandering more or less north and east. Eventually we came upon an idyllic little campo by a quiet canal. There was a drug store, a small odds and ends shop, a couple of other businesses, and a little cafe with tables in the campo.<BR><BR>We sat at the cafe, watching the locals--children, older couples, widows, men, women--enjoy their campo. It felt as though we'd always been there; that we had been coming to that cafe every evening for years. Had a delightful meal, even with a couple of surprises on our plates as the menu was not translated into any foreign languager and the waiter's English was about as good as our Italian.<BR><BR>I could write a short story, but to keep it in bounds here, we could have sat there forever had the cafe not closed up around midnight. The next morning, we couldn't remember the name of the campo or the cafe. We never found it again. It was such a special evening, we'll never forget.
Feb 18th, 2003, 07:49 AM
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I gues I'd have to say there isn't a single "best" I could vote for. I've been to most of those named, and I'm surprised no one mentioned Piazza Navona or Piazza del Popolo in Rome--both of which are very nice. But for uniqueness and beauty with a sense of history, my vote would be a tie between Moscow, Brussels, Prague, Ceske Budejovice, Munich, and one that hasn't been mentioned: the utterly charming little town square right on the lake in the village of Orta San Giulio, Italy.
