Gorgeous Verona

Verona was our second weekend trip while Mer was visiting me in Italy. Originally we wanted to head south to see Positano and Capri, but problems getting my Russian visa meant we didn't have as much time as we originally thought. So rather than a rushed (and expensive!) trip south, we decided to take a day trip to Verona.

Verona is just gorgeous. We went on an especially hot and busy day so the streets were crammed with people, and there was precious little shade to be found, but we still had an amazing time.

Our first stop was Casa di Giulietta, naturally. While I was really happy we got to see the house and famous statue, it certainly was a test of patience. The courtyard was crammed full of eager statue fondlers making it hard to move let alone get a picture. I also noticed that locks seem to have replaced love letters these days (in a true sign of the times, inside the house museum you can send Giulietta an email on one of the provided computers).

After a tour of the interior of the house (well worth the visit and price of 6 euros) we decided to wander through the center of town and then to the outskirts.  The center square was packed with vendors and our fellow tourists looking for bargains at the crazy end of summer sales going on so we continued to head away from the center.  We lucked out and found a small cafe with a balcony right over the river. For such an amazing view the prices were very reasonable. I had a salad of arugula, lemon & thinly shaved beef. It was one of my favorite meals in Italy. Light and delicious.

We walked around for a bit more after lunch until the afternoon sun forced us to seek out some shade, and take advantage of the extraordinarily cheap aperol spritz specials many of the cafes had (they were around 5-7 euros in Florence, we paid 2-3 euros in Verona). 

Our time in Verona went much too quickly. Since it was only a day trip we were unable to see an opera due to the train schedule (trains stop running before the performances end). This means Verona is on my Must-Return list.