Andrea Palladio could make a farmhouse look like a temple, and at Villa Pojana he did it with remarkable restraint. Built in the mid-sixteenth century for Bonifacio Pojana, a nobleman with military ambitions, the villa stands in the village of Poiana Maggiore in the flat country south of Vicenza. Its facade is almost bare: a great arched entrance framed by a Serlian motif with round windows, a pediment above, smooth plaster walls. The interior has frescoes by artists of the time. Like other Palladian villas of the Veneto, it counts as one component of UNESCO's inscription of the city of Vicenza and the villas around it.
The Basso Vicentino, the southern part of the province, is a land of fields, canals and poplars, flat as a table and crossed by rivers that flood in wet years. The Berici hills rise to the north, a cluster of low wooded hills with villages and vineyards, while to the south-east the Euganean hills can be seen on clear days. Montagnana, a short ride away, is one of the best-preserved walled towns in Italy, with its brick walls and towers intact, and it is known for its sweet prosciutto. Noventa Vicentina, the nearest larger town, has a grand villa now used as its town hall.
The riding here is easy and relaxing. The roads run straight between fields, with gentle bends around villages and along canals, and traffic is generally light. It is not a place for corners, but the Berici hills offer some twisty climbs and pleasant ridges if you want to work the bike. Summer is hot and humid, and mosquitoes are a feature of the evenings. Fog is common in late autumn and winter, sometimes very thick, so take care. Watch for tractors and cyclists on the narrow roads.
Noventa Vicentina has fuel, shops and cafés. The local food is rich: bigoli pasta with duck sauce, baccalà alla vicentina, salt cod slowly cooked in milk and onions, polenta and wines from the Berici hills, especially the red Tai Rosso. The villa's opening times vary, so check before you go. Take time to stand in front of the facade and appreciate its simplicity, which feels almost modern. Palladio used very few elements, and every one of them counts.