April 5th: Buona Pasqua in Verona!

We wondered if we would be able to see anything on Easter Sunday in an Italian city, but we needn‘t have worried:  Verona is a tourist town, and there were crowds of people everywhere.  We first waited in line, and then viewed the Arena.  Next, we waited in line and viewed the rather disappointing Casa di Julietta.  We waited in line for the Torre dei Lomberti and saw some amazing views.  We decided to wander for a while through the Piazza di Erbe and saw the famous graveyard at Santa Maria, before visiting the overwhelming church of Santa Anastasia.  We wandered toward the duomo, but decided we were a bit daunted by churches, and decided to take the old Roman bridge across the river to see the Roman Theatre, or Teatro Romana.  While the Teatro itself is closed for repair, the small road up the hill beside it gave us spectacular views of the city – and relief from the crowds.  After a cup of coffee in the sky, we descended back to the city, found the Opera Museum closed, and wandered the streets, bu

ying some pizzetti  (much like a calzone) for later, and enjoying excellent gelato as we walked.  All in all, a beautiful day in a beautiful place.

We got off to a relatively early start,  which was  a great idea because half of Europe seemed to be enjoying Easter in Verona along with us.  After a nice big breakfast with plenty to drink – juice, water and coffee – we headed out. Yesterday we ended up a bit parched, and at least we can learn from our mistakes!

We walked by San Zeno and felt some affection for the beautiful church.  It is the closest tourist site to our hotel , and the distinctive stripes of the “new tower” (1580) can be seen almost everywhere in the city.  After several rather trying episodes getting lost, on foot and by bus, over the last couple of days, it was nice to finally feel  we knew our way around.

We were early enough to avoid the “big lines” at the arena, and only had to wait about ten minutes in line.  I was glad we had bought the Verona card, as regular admission is €10, and there isn’t an exhibit or even a sign board inside.  Actually, the Verona Opera Festival starts next week, and the arena was being set up to show opera.  The size of the arena is impressive – it is the third largest in Italy – but it is also the most heavily restored and changed one we have seen.  In fact, each section in the bottom now has a very nice washroom, and I couldn’t help but wonder how the Romans managed when this building was theirs.  We kept hearing, “You’ll see the arena,” when telling us where things were, but in fact, the arena is completely surrounded by buildings, and we didn’t even notice it the first time we walked through the Piazza Bra – and it is IN the Piazza Bra.

 

The lowest floor of the arena -- you can walk all the way around.

The exterior of the arena.

This is the line-up to get in, taken from the second floor.  There are seperate ticket windows to buy tickets and for the Verona Card, but one line up to get to them both.  Sigh!

Our new found assurance with the streets of Verona allowed us to walk straight to the house of Juliet – and into madness.  Of course, this isn’t really the house of the fictional heroine from Shakespeare’s play.  However, like many of his basic plots, Shakespeare had borrowed the plot from an Italian poem, and there really WAS a Capelli family here in Verona.  In the Nineteenth Century, a clever dude decided that putting up a statue of Juliet in a courtyard might attract the tourists.  He was right.  Unfortunately, it is a small courtyard, and entire tour groups were pressing in.  Children were crying that really distressed cry, and only my sense that I might be able to use this in English class kept me where I was.  Only Ian’s 35 years of love and affection for me kept him there, and it was a near thing.  Perhaps I wouldn’t have been so critical if Ian hadn’t been muttering in my ear “This better be worth it” as we were compacted into a block of tourists to be fired into the casa, about 20 at a time.  What is inside is fine, there just isn’t all that much.  I was happy to see some costumes and the bed from the Zefferelli movie, which I bet I have seen 150 times in the last 20 years, but the decorations and furniture were largely modern replicas, and “Juliet’s desk” held computer displays.

The bed from the movie.  Romeo slept here.

Olivia Hussey wore this dress in the first scenes.

The courtyard.  Can you even tell where the queue to get in is?

A statue of Juliet, placed here about 100 years ago.  There is a tradition that if you place your hand on her breast, you will find happiness in love.  As a result, she has shiny breasts.

Juliet's balconey, in a rare moment between tourists peeking out.  Some people waited in the queue and then just stood on the balcony, and left.  We did the opposite, and skipped the balcony.

We left Juliet’s house and went the short distance to the Piazza Erbe, which is lined with torres (Medieval towers that people built to live in and for defence in the turbulent late medieval period),  and cafes and shops set in historic buildings.  The piazza itself is filled with fountains, monuments – and more stalls designed to separate tourists from their money.  Somehow throngs of tourists find places to stroll, enjoy a cup of coffee, and take pictures.  We were surprised by how many people were travelling with their dogs, and they could be found everywhere.

A monument in the Piazza.

Piazza Elbe

Our next destination is also at Piazza Erbe, and we soon found ourselves in ANOTHER lineup for the Torre dei Lamberti.  It too was free with the Verona Card, but we elected to pay €1 each for the lift – and saved ourselves 243 steps.  It is a bit misleading, though, because the viewpoint is at 289 steps, and the life lets you out in the middle of the staircase.  Pity the poor tourist who can’t go the distance.  We took some marvellous pictures from the viewpoint, added in 1789 along with a clock.  Ian made it up to the 368^th step, high up in the Nineteenth Century addition and took some great pictures, while I cowered in the winds down below.

The walk from the torre to Santa Anastasia was fascinating.  We passed many palazzos and in the courtyard of Piazza Vivianni we saw the Scavi Scaligeri, and archeological dig.  Ian was excited to see the recently uncovered Roman mosaics.

We also passed the Church of Santa Maria in Chiavica.  It was once a convent, and is now famous for the funerary monuments in the attached graveyard.  At the top of one of the monuments is a horse similar to the Scala horsemen found in the Castelvecchio.

Santa Anastasia was jaw dropping.  The original tiles, in black, white and red, are on the floor, and the frescoed patterns on the ceiling are as beautiful as when first painted.  Each chapel and alter was more spectacular than the one before, and it seemed that every Veronese sculptor, painter, carver, or ceramic artist was represented.  I particularly liked the Holy Water Stoup.  The entire place really was somewhat overwhelming.

We had walked along the river to reach the church, and decided to cross the old Roman Bridge and see the Roman Theatre.  Along the way we searched for a coffee place that had seats, but found only very costly restaurants.  The path beside the theatre offered excellent views of the theatre itself, and then a panorama of the city, and rose up to the park of Castel S. Pietro.  The views were amazing, and although it was not free of people, it certainly was less hectic and packed than the city below us.  We were rewarded with a restaurant at the top, where we enjoyed cups of coffee.  We planned to order a meal, but after about 25 minutes of waiting for the waiter to return, we paid for our coffees and headed back down the hill.

We stopped off at Doge Pizza for Pizzetta – and they were very very good!  We bought a gelato each – mine was cherry on the bottom and Fiore di Pistachio on the top (pistachio ripple, sort of).  Ian stuck with hazelnut and pistachio.  We were both happy with our choices as we walked along, past San Zeno, and home by 5:00.

We’ve updated the Garmin, charged its batteries, and uploaded the UK maps, so we are good to go.  Another wonderful day out in the world for us!