Flipping through my pictures just now, I'm reminded of how absolutely adorable Verona is. So far, it ranks as one of my favorite Italian towns. The classical, romantic, historic and just plain tranquil feeling Verona has is well worth a trip. The arena in the center of Verona is the third largest in Italy and offers some lovely views from the top. From there we went to Juliet's house and took pictures with Juliet's statue. I opted out of grabbing her chest - I think it's supposed to be good luck or something - but was amazed at the number of people getting so up close and personal with a bronze statue that thousands of people manhandle each day ... GermX anyone? Apparently you can no longer write letters to Juliet and place them in the wall (only in mailboxes), but you can scribble messages in the dark little tunnel that leads into the courtyard - ah, yes, romance lives on. We grabbed lunch at a cute little Trattoria that served several dishes with donkey in them. I did try the donkey ravioli and will have to put that experience in the 'Done it once - no need to do it again' column. They definitely use a good amount of spices with the donkey meat ... I'm just not sure if they are trying to cover up some kind of heinous flavor or not. We did find a fantastic gelato place (line out the door to prove it) on the river before heading back to the train station. All in all, a wonderful place to visit.
Juliet's Balcony
Little messages of love ... aka graffiti
The arena
Looking down on the market in the center from the arena
Some fantastically costumed street performers
Along the river ...
Locks on one of the bridges. I believe the reasoning is that two lovers place a lock on a bridge to show how enduring their feelings for each other are - I just wonder who keeps the key on the off chance that things don't work out ...
Many of the churches in Verona use alternating layers of white stone and brick. I also love the painted ceilings you see everywhere in Italy.
Juliet
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