Although a mere 30-minute drive from Vicenza, Padova to me was mainly Ikea, Decathlon, and a couple of Indian restaurants. I visited the city center more than two years ago, but it was at the hieght of summer, and the town mostly seemed large and quiet to me and nothing else. In addition, the overabundance of industrial areas and modern buildings that ring the city center made it look like a large and important city, but definitely one that made it comparable to say, Baltimore. Being the closest "big" city to my apartment, it was a place to run errands and nothing more. But on my second visit to the city center, armed with a better understanding of Padova, I was able to really appreciate the wealth of heritage the city has to offer.
