Travel Diaries: Verona, Italy

30 Jan

Written By Rhi

The third stop on our Italy Christmas travels was Verona and I fell in love with this place the moment I stepped off the train. The streets are wide and clean, the buildings a nice mix of ancient and modern.

We were only in Verona for 24 hours but we tried to make the most of our time here and it's one of the stops I really wish we'd had more time at, and it's somewhere I'd 100% go back to and recommend to anyone- whether you like great shopping, historic sights or hiking, you'll find something to love about this city.

Charming is the perfect description of Verona. From the Christmas lights and trees, to the market, the gates, the shops, the paving; everything just had something a little bit special about it. Frittelle con Nutella is a little sugary slice of heaven and if we'd stayed any longer I think I'd have become firm friends with the chap handing out these delicacies and also a stone heavier upon my arrival home!

Verona Arena

One of the first things we saw in Verona was the Verona Arena. I mean, Jesus Christ, it was breathtaking. I know absolutely feck all about the history of (anywhere) Italy, but even with my ignorant eyes I could see that this was something seriously special. A quick wikipedia check tells me this was built in the 1st century and is one of the best preserved structures of it's kind. Wow.

I loved how it was equally enthralling in the daylight as at night time, lit up subtly but beautifully. We were so strapped for time that we didn't get a chance to go and look around inside but I think it's probably best viewed from the outside anyway.

Castel San Pietro

I took to Instagram to ask what the 'must do' things should be on our whistle stop tour to Verona and Alex advised that for a great view of the city we should head up to the Castel San Pietro, so we wasted no time heading up there.

We crossed over the crashing river, admiring the colour of the water, even on the grey day and headed up and up and up. There were a lot of steps, a lot of up ward trekking and a few view points along the way.

Safe to say I was more than a little unprepared for the hike, but it wasn't so bad and was absolutely worth it. The view was spectacular, even on this grey and grizzly day.

Juliet and her Balcony

I mean, come on. We had to go. I wasn't aware that her breast is apparently a bringer of good luck (silly me) so I didn't think to go and give her a grope, but it was a nice little stop on our visit to Verona. I find it both fascinating and wonderful that a work of fiction can mean so much to so many and have such historic significance. I wonder if the stories of today, or tomorrow, will ever hold up in the way these tales do. It's really very sad to know that they wont.