Verona by Train

Saturday, May 3

Thunderstorms prevented us from going to Verona as planned yesterday, so we decided to go today. Vanessa's baseball game was in Aviano, two hours away, so they dropped us off at the train station on their way. We walked from the train station to Piazza Bra and planned to spend time in Piazza Erbe and go to Juliet's House. 

              Piazza Erbe was once a Roman forum; the Venetian lion sits on the column

                     "A fountain has bubbled here for 2,000 years. After the original Roman
                    statue lost its head and arms, a sculptor added new ones, and it 
                    became Verona's Madonna."                          --  Rick Steves

          "Renaissance nobles showed off with finely painted facades on their palaces."

 

 Vendors with souvenirs and food; these strawberries were delicious!

            "A whale's rib -- likely a souvenir brought home by a traveling merchant from a
            trip to the Orient, reminding the townspeople that there was a big world out there."

         

           In contrast to the medieval 
           surroundings, streets are lined
           with upscale stores with
           fashions like this
           skirt with shark pockets.

Everything has to do with Romeo and 
Juliet. William Shakespeare put Verona
on the map with his play.











When the clouds started looming and the sky darkening, we headed for Juliet's house right
down the street. We had been here before but had not visited the museum.

     Casa de Gulietta is on Via Cappello, the street of the cap makers. Capulet would be the
     name of a family who made hats and caps. The "museum" contains genuine antiques 
     from the 16th and 17th centuries, paintings, frescoes, and ceramics.

 Verona purchased this building in 1905. "The interior remained untouched because it gives  the feeling of medieval living." Windows, gothic doors, and the balcony (1937) were added.

              

                   A view of the courtyard; the balcony (right) where you can take photos

A large collection of ceramics
that were very pretty 








 Amor Mio (My Love)
 shown below
 

        Some of the items used in the 1968 Zeffirelli movie of Romeo and Juliet are here.

                       Len Whiting's costume; did not get a good photo of Olivia Hussey's

            Computers where you can write a letter to Juliet and post it in the red box

                                         We walked back to Piazza Erbe in the rain

                                 These ducks got under the fountain to escape the rain.

                       Piazza Bra with sports-related booths set up for World Run

                                         
    We should have taken a cab to the train station, but we decided to walk. By the time we
    got there, despite having umbrellas, our pants, socks, and shoes were soaked. When we
    got back to Vicenza, we just wanted to to get warm and dry!