The Villa Almerico Capra, known as La Rotonda, stands on a small hill above Vicenza, and it is one of the most copied buildings in the history of architecture. Andrea Palladio began it in the 1560s for a retired papal official, Paolo Almerico, who wanted a place for entertaining and for looking at the view rather than for farming. The plan is a perfect square, with a round hall under a dome at the centre, and each of the four sides has an identical portico with Ionic columns and a flight of steps, so that the house presents the same face to every direction. The idea was that the building should be an ornament to the landscape, and the landscape an ornament to the house.
The influence was enormous. Thomas Jefferson borrowed from it for Monticello, and Lord Burlington built Chiswick House in London on the same idea, and a long line of English country houses and American mansions carry its echo. Palladio's buildings in and around Vicenza were listed by UNESCO in 1994, and the city is full of them, from the Teatro Olimpico, one of the oldest surviving indoor theatres in Europe, to the Basilica in the main square. The interior of La Rotonda is open only on certain days, and the grounds are often open when the house is not, so check the days before you go.
The hill is part of the Berici Hills, a low range of limestone covered with olive groves, vineyards and cherry trees, with villas and small churches tucked in the folds. Monte Berico, the pilgrimage hill above the city, has a large basilica and a lovely view. In spring the cherry blossom is white on the slopes, and in autumn the vines are red and gold.
For a rider, the Berici Hills offer pleasant, winding lanes with gentle climbs and views over the plain, and the traffic is moderate, though cyclists are numerous. The surface is mostly good. Vicenza, under two kilometres away, has fuel stations, restaurants and bars, and the neighbouring villages of Arcugnano and Torri have small shops. Spring and autumn are the best seasons, and a plate of baccalà alla vicentina, salt cod stewed in milk, is the local speciality.