Verona, Romeo and Giulietta

Verona’s past is highlighted by the balcony of Romeo and Giulietta. Which came first, the balcony or the play? Did the story immortalize the balcony, or did the balcony inspire the story. Whether as a good luck “charm” or because “boys will be boys,” the statue’s left breast has been made shiny by many hands.

A delightful old city with street after street of colorful buildings, markets, and old, old ruins, Verona is quite famous for the operatic presentations in the Amphitheater during the summer. Built with almost perfect acoustics, the original Arena could accommodate nearly 25,000 spectators. The very unusual Ponte Scaligero, a bridge built across the River Adige in the 1350s, was rebuilt after being destroyed by the Germans in WW II.

Piazza delle Erbe (Square of the Herbs), where chariot races went round and round when it was the Roman Forum, is particularly lively on market days. The market stalls and awnings of the fruit, vegetable, and flower peddlers are especially colorful.