City of Romeo and Juliet

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Geo: 45.442, 10.9955

Ah, I'd forgotten how much I love Verona! Steven and I had gone to Verona in 1998, but hadn't been since, and it was just wonderful!

We parked near the Arena, and as we came in through the city walls, there were people everywhere – there was a festival for school children on, and kids everywhere! We immediately went to the Roman Arena – I think it really caught the imagination of the kids to be in a building that was over 2000 years old, and not particularly changed in that time. We climbed up to the top seats, and watched the teams setting up for the operas that will be held here this summer (we've bought Rita and Elio tickets to Aida here in the next couple of weeks, whilst we are in Tuscany). The Arena was large enough to hold the whole population of Verona when it was built – about 20,000 and is so impressive. Then we had a wander through the corridors and tunnels – Steven asking the kids where the lions would have been kept, before being brought out into the Arena!

After having our photos taken with the Pinocchio posing in the street, we walked up the pedestrianised street (past dozens of exclusive shops) to the Piazza Erbe, the main square. By then, we were ready for an icecream and a coffee, and had a lovely sit down at a coffee shop on the edge of the square. We were also able to wander off, two or three at a time, to look at the markets in the Piazza (which didn't interest Elio or the boys) and buy a few souvenirs and things at the stalls. The square itself is absolutely beautiful, with painted houses, fantastic fountains, a whale rib (in the Arco della Costa) mentioned in Romeo & Juliet, and even some old chains where (we told the kids) naughty children were tied up, in years gone by. I don't think they believe everything we tell them!

We then went to the House of Juliet (or the "so-called" Casa Giulietta) which may or may not have been where Juliet lived. It doesn't really matter – it was a fascinating look at a 13th century house, with references to the Shakespearean play and famous productions of the play throughout, as well as great frescoes etc. in the house. We all really enjoyed it, though Tom was disgusted at the ending of the play – “They were crazy! Who'd do that to themselves?” And downstairs, I succumbed and bought a tacky souvenir oven mitt embroidered with Steven and my names, done by a lovely Aussie girl who'd followed a boy to Verona.

We then went to have some lunch – after a bit of a false start, we ended back in the Piazza Erbe at a nice little restaurant where we had a light lunch. The kids are getting so good at “going with the flow” in terms of what they eat – all of them understand when you say “this is how they make this at this restaurant – not having (mushrooms, for example) is not an option. “ Whilst they were never really fussy eaters, this has definitely been one of the immediate learning experiences of the trip.

Off then to the Torre dei Lamberti – we were lured into going up the 84m tower by promise of a lift (described as being for the lazy!) It only went about 70m up, but that was high enough for a wonderful view over the town, and high enough to be a challenge to those of us who don't have a head for heights! I scooted back downstairs before the bells chimed the hour, as we thought it would be deafening, but it was apparently a bit of an anticlimax! We then wandered through the Piazza dei Signori, with its lovely palazzos around it, to the tombs of the Scaligeri – these were the rulers of Verona for many years from the 14th century, and they built themselves impressive but over the top funeral monuments.

We truly are lucky tourists! Just as I was saying to the kids that Daddy and I had dinner near here years ago, and it was near the reputed home of Romeo, I was able to find the home of Romeo (and the restaurant) - no tourists here! Then, we arrived at a bus stop, which turned out to be the stop on the line for San Zeno, the church we wanted to go to, and a bus was arriving in 5 minutes, which gave us all a minute for a sit down! And our museum ticket (the Verona card) covered entrance to the Arena, Juliet's house, San Zeno's and free bus transport (plus a heap of other things we didn't have time to get to!)

San Zeno's was amazing! I can't remember going here years ago, but think we might have just gone to the outside. San Zeno is the patron saint of Verona, and the church was built in the 11th century and is the most ornate Romanesque church in northern Italy. The bronze door panels (also 11th century) – 24 of them, nailed onto the wooden door to make it look like a solid bronze door! - were very interesting, but for me, it was the incredibly ornate interior of the church that impressed me most. The beautiful blue ceiling was just incredible, as was the lovely frescoes and altarpiece. We spent a lovely time here, just wandering around. Downstairs, in the crypts under the current church, it was clear that bits of older buildings had just been nicked and included in the building of the church – some of the columns were clearly in upside down or on their side! And the statue of the laughing San Zeno was very interesting - not only is he the only laughing pope that I've seen, but the only time a pope has caught a fish on the staff/rod that he carries - are these two facts related?

Again,the lucky tourists stepped straight onto a bus (OK, this time I'd checked the timetable in advance to ensure our timing was perfect!) Whilst we were waiting, the kids saw some Alpini soldiers across from the bus stop and were impressed. The bus ride across the river and past the Castello was very nice, and dropped us right into the Piazza Erbe. We filled our water bottles at an ancient Roman fountain – the weather has turned really hot, and most days are above 27 degrees! Then, we walked back down the glamorous streets of Verona, stopping for an icecream in the square opposite the Arena – we proved to the waitress why we'd been insistent that the kids do better with cups than cones, as the 7 icecreams dripped onto the white tablecloth!

And whilst we'd thought of dinner in Verona or somewhere along the way home, we ended up driving back to our wonderful Asolo for a quiet dinner on the patio! Thanks again to my wonderful husband, who drives us all without (many) complaints!

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Comments

[Uncle Mark]

I think I've found myself a patron saint! San Zeno! Laughing, Fishing! If only he had a glass of wine in his other hand!!!