Our plan: check out Verona and take a slow breath for two days before Florence. The Italian miracle was that it worked. The B&B was a tiny, perfectly adequate little studio where we were nearby to a sprawling street market that had a fun organic little store that combined a small bookstore (I approach those with special fondness) with a small but complete bar/grill/ fruit smoothie station. It was personal, cool, and sweet, and followed a late day of hop-on — hop-off touring. We got to an old castle and a fine spot overlooking the city and the river below. We snacked all day but forgot to eat a meal, and then were too tired to stay out for a proper sit-down dinner.
The night before we’d gone to Aida — a presentation by the city of Verona in their old Roman arena.
It was a most amazing stupendous event; combining elements of the Cirque du Soleil, light show, story, tragedy, and fabulous music by Joe Green (Giuseppe Verdi) first performed here in 1829. It is an annual presentation, and this one fielded hundreds of performers and wild pyrotechnics. At the end, as everyone died (of course — it’s opera) the final chorus was sung from a triangular prism of glass (masquerading as a tomb under a rock). The story seems like a retelling of Romeo and Juliet, who remarkably enough, are purportedly from Verona. Daughter Kelley disabused me of my notions around that! I will pass on this myth-breaking secret. They weren’t real people.
I know — I’ll ask forgiveness later, sigh. It’s a lot like the Easter 🐰, but still…wait!
Juliet wasn’t real?
Ladies, people wear a lot of dresses and have cooler shoulders than we, given their wardrobe choices — mostly bare with scrunchy little tube tops, and form-fitting fanny. Thank you Kardashian family!
Fast 💨 train through the country tomorrow to Florence in style. We could have taken a 5-hour train — with changes, one choice. Or we could take the faster train for twice the price. Guess which we did…
It’s so interesting to see how clean this city is. They must work on it because tourism is a thoughtless and messy business. And we see lots of tourists, tons of youngs, and of course, loud children, all being smiled at by their parents and strangers alike.
Aida, the crowning jewel of the city of Shakespeare — and that hussy Juliet, began at 9:30, and ended about 1:30 am. Add in the taxi line and we got home at about 2:30 am, thus was the sleeping late with which I began this little tale.
Our combined love to all, for today, from the lovely citta di Verona.