O, Romeo, Romeo! In other words... Verona (Italy)

Trip Details
Where: Verona, Italy
When: 3rd October 2011

 During our trip to Venice, me and my friends thought we couldn't miss seeing Verona too. We took the train and in a couple of hours we were there. We bought the typical tourist maps and started following the circled numbers' paths.

Number one was Arena di Verona. They actually use it for concerts and other performances. We didn't get in, because there were some renovations, but here's how it looks on the outside:

Arena di Verona

Next was a castle, called Castelvecchio,

Castelvecchio

which is the most important military monument there. It belonged to the Scaliger dynasty that ruled the city in the Middle Ages.

On our way to the next sight, we went through an ancient Roman gate - Porta Borsari:

Porta Borsari

On the other side of that gate and on the north-western side of Piazza delle Erbe was another castle - Pallazo Maffei:

Pallazo Maffei

Piazza delle Erbe is also known as the Market Square. As we were walking through it, there was a guy inviting people to a restaurant. He was like: 'Buongiorno! Buongiorno!' when suddenly he said 'Добър ден!' (Good afternoon in Bulgarian) I asked my friend: 'Did he just say 'Добър ден?' She answered 'That's what I was wondering.' And a voice came form behind: 'Почуди се още малко и ще разбереш.' (Keep wondering and you'll find out.)

In the middle of the square the Madonna di Verona Fountain raises.

Madonna di Verona Fountain

On the fountain's right is the tallest tower in Verona - Torre dei Lamberti.

Torre dei Lamberti

We wandered around the market for a bit, bought some fridge magnets and continued. Our next stop was the one we'd been looking forward to. The House of Juliet.

Casa di Giulietta

The walls on both sides of the entrance were all covered in inc and stickers. According to a superstition if you stick your & your beloved one's names with a gum there you'll love each other forever.

Casa di Giulietta

Once we got in the famous balcony where Juliet used to dream about Romeo and Romeo climbed to be with her rose above our heads.

Casa di Giulietta

And below the balcony was a statue of Juliet herself.

Statue of Juliet

Another superstition says that you have to touch Juliet's boob for luck.

 

We got in the house to live through our Juliet moment and go out on her balcony. (Yes, you can do that.)

 

Inside we found wooden stands with parts of Shakespeare's play, some requisite from an old Romeo and Juliet movie and other interesting items about them. But the most intriguing one was the Juliet's Club's room.

Juliet's Club

Have you seen the movie 'Letters to Juliet'? About a girl who goes to Juliet's house and meets some other girls/women from Juliet's club who respond to the love letters left on the walls? Well, it turns out you can actually write Juliet a letter. 

 

After Juliet's we found Romeo's house.

Casa di Romeo

You can't go in unfortunately and there are no walls to stick anything with gums. But the seem to have lived close to each other.

As we continued following our path we saw many different statues, towers, churches.. But I'll skip to the next most impressive sight - Castel S. Pietro and Teatro Romano on the other side of the river.

Castel S. Pietro & Teatro Romano, view from Ponte di Pietra

We decided to go up to the castle, where the view was spectacular.

View from Castel S. Pietro

Our last stop was at Tombe di Giulietta (Juliet's Tomb). I should tell you about our creepy experience there. We found it (at Shakespeare street) and entered the yard. We looked around - no tomb was in view so we went into a small building on the left. There was a sign that said 'free access'. Once inside, we found a girl at a desk. 'Excuse me, hi, where exactly is the tomb?', I asked. 'Right over there in the garden', she said and pointed to a door on the right. 'Do we need tickets?' 'Yes.' Okaay.. We bought the tickets and she said 'Go up the stairs on the left.' Me and my friend shared a confused look but we followed the instructions. On the second floor there was a museum. Two ladies were standing there. We were the only visitors so one led us to a room full of sculptures. We walked around and she followed our every step. Weird. We said nothing. The other lady then pointed to another room. While we were in it they were both watching us. As if they were worried we would break something or I don't know. Then we went down some stairs and just when we thought that should be the way to the garden we ended up in another room. Bigger than the other two.. something like an altar. Another lady and a man in a wheel chair were there. And they also followed us. I could feel their breaths behind me. We got out as soon as possible and finally reached the garden. I can't really tell you what was inside the museum. I was looking over my shoulder on my every step, expecting an attack. Too creeped out.

Once in the garden we easily found the tomb, which was pretty small:

Juliet's Tomb

And that's where our tour ended. Well, we did get out and head back to Venice, stopping in Padua on the way, but that's another story. 

Verona was quite charming in general. Very welcoming and somehow cosy. We thoroughly enjoyed our time there. Hope you will too.

The Beauty of Venice (Italy)

Trip DetailsWhere: Venice, ItalyWhen: 2nd - 5th October 2011

The rest of my trip to Venice was also great. After solving the mystery and not finding my treasure (check The Venice Quest post for more information), me and my friends could finally enjoy Venice. We bought a map and started walking through some small streets on the way to the circled numbers on the map (the sights).

The first thing we noticed was something very typical for the town. It’s full of bridges over canals and beautiful buildings around.

Venice

This one reminded me of a movie I’ve seen about Casanova. He used to jump off balconies on those bridges running from some angry husbands after spending the night with their wives.

 

The next thing we realized was that people there used boats as means of transportation.

Boats, Venice

As you may know, no motor vehicles are allowed on the island. So it’s either boat or on foot.

One of the days there, we sat on a bridge for two hours just to observe the passing boats. There were all kinds of them – carrying mineral water, food supplies, construction materials… There even was a crane.

I should be honest about those two hours on the bridge, though, and admit that we weren’t observing only the boats. Italians turned out to be very good looking. (Yes, I’m blushing.)

Anyway... Beside Italians, there are a lot of tourists in Venice. We followed the flow and got ourselves on Ponte di Rialto (Rialto Bridge).

Ponte di Rialto (Rialto Bridge).

It’s the oldest bridge that connects Venice over Canale Grande. There are shops on both sides.

And here’s the Canale itself:

Canale Grande

Canale Grande

The boat on the bottom of the first photo is the public transport there, also known as “vaporetto”. It takes you around Venice, also to the islands close by. It’s fun riding on it. We got on one right before the sunset and we saw this amazing view:

One of the most famous sights in Venice is Piazza San Marco (Square San Marco).



Piazza San Marco (Square San Marco).View from the Bell tower

It is known for the hundreds of pigeons there.

Piazza San Marco (Square San Marco).

Unfortunately, there were too many people and just a few birds when I was there. I didn't even get the chance to feed them or take a photo with one of them hanging on my arm...

 

On one side of the square, there’s the Basilica San Marco.

Basilica San Marco

Basilica San Marco (never mind the ghosts... it's not so spooky in reality ;)

Right across the Basilica is Museo Correr (The Correr Museum).



Museo Correr (The Correr Museum).

It contains collections of paintings, prints, coins, weapons, military regalia, representing the history of Venice between the 13th and 16th centuries.

 

The Bell Tower

The Bell Tower

reveals an amasing view.

Vie from The Bell Tower

Next to the Basilica is Palazzo Ducale (The Palace of the Doges).

Palazzo Ducale (The Palace of the Doges).

It actully looks more like a parliament than a palace.

It features the famous Ponte dei Sospiri (The Bridge of Sighs).

Ponte dei Sospiri (The Bridge of Sighs).

They used to take prisoners from the courtroom to jail through that bridge.

Ponte dei Sospiri (The Bridge of Sighs).

They sighed when they saw Venice for the last time.

View fromPonte dei Sospiri (The Bridge of Sighs).

That’s how it got its name.

You can see a Gondola in the photo above. Getting on one is supposed to be a very romantic experience. It takes you through Canale Grande. The gondolier sings while you're on.

The view from the Basilica is spectacular as well.

View from the Basilica

The building on the right is The National Library and on the left is The Palace of the Doges.

 

Right next to The Palace of the Doges, we found the hotel, where Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp's characters from "The Tourist" stayed.

Hotel Danieli

Be sure to watch the movie before you go there. ;)

There were classical musicians in the restaurants around Piazza San Marco.

The music created a really beautiful atmosphere.

Another famous thing in Venice is the masks. The town is full of shops, selling them.

Masks, Venice

I guess it’d be great to visit during the Carnival (some time in February-March), when there’s a whole parade of masked people.

 

Another thing Venice is popular for is its glass.

Glass Figures, Venice

 Yes, these are made of glass. And there are many more like that.

 

On one of the days we were there, we took the vaporetto and went to Lido island. It was a huge surprise when we found a beach there.

Lido Island

 I almost forgot. You should definitely try the Pizza Rolls.

Pizza Rolls

Sightseeing makes you hungry. ;)

You can also try the Limoncello. It's a typical Venetian drink. And of course whatever else is in your taste (I personally loved the dark chocolate ice cream and the Italian coffee).

 

So as a whole, the trip was very exciting. Venice is different than other towns, as you probably have noticed, and very beautiful. I really had fun and would gladly go back one day.

 

Who knows, I might meet you there. ;)

The Venice Quest (Italy)

Trip DetailsWhere: Venice, ItalyWhen: 2nd - 5th October 2011

I went to Venice (Italy) a few days ago. It was a very exciting trip. First of all, because I was on a mission.

Me and a virtual friend of mine (I’ll just call him C), who I don’t know in real life, decided to play a "The Da Vinci Code" game. C was going to Venice a month earlier so we got this crazy idea that he leaves something for me there.

And so he did. He left a secret treasure somewhere in Venice and gave me a riddle to find it.

"Between ferre and verre, the treasure is hidden at a very pure lady's feet." he said.

I started my research right away. I was very eager to find out more about it. (I’d just seen "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides") So I asked a few additional questions in order to make it clearer. C gave me some hints and in the end I knew that the treasure was somewhere on the outside, not in an envelope (and as he said ‘not alive and not money’) and my name was written on it plus the request ‘If you’re not her, put it back, please.’

Knowing that, I continued with unriddling the puzzle. My first thought was about the "very pure lady" – a statue. Most likely a statue of Saint Mary. I left it at that and moved on to the words "ferre" and "verre".

They’re not in English, obviously, so I tried translating them form Italian (since I was going to Italy, it sounded logical). But it turned out Italian language didn’t recognize them either. So I tried French. (C’s French, so that was the next best logical move). And there was my answer.  Or at least part of it. "Verre" means "glass" in French. "Glass" as in "the famous Venetian glass", I thought.

But then, there was no translation for "ferre". So, guess what? I googled it. The only result I got was Gianfranco Ferre – the designer. The logic took me to a shop. A Ferre shop, opposite a shop for Venetian glass and a statue of Saint Mary somewhere in between. Too easy to be the solution to the quest? Well, yes.

I started searching for a Ferre shop in Venice and when I didn't find one, I started doubting my discoveries. So I asked C again. (You might think I shouldn’t have asked so many questions and should’ve just gone there and searched for the treasure. But you should know I only had a few days in Venice to go sightseeing, feel the atmosphere and finish the quest, so I had to make sure I know as much as possible.) C pointed me in the right direction. "Ferre" wasn’t Gianfranco Ferre but it was a derivative from the word "fer", which in French means "iron".

“Between iron and glass…“

C also mentioned that if I went to Venice by bus, I’d see the "verre" and if I went there by train, I’d see the "ferre". (And if I went by boat, I’d be able to admire the view. But that’s another story.) Another clue he gave me, was that the statue was near a church and that Dan Brown could help me with it.

I automatically decided that "ferre" was the railway station. There’s a lot of iron there. (And as it turned out later "ferrovia" means "railway" in Italian.) So I started looking for the "verre". I opened Google maps and searched for something made of glass near the bus station. It was a long search until I spotted (with the help of another friend) a glass bridge that connects the two stations over a canal.

In the meantime, I made some researches for the statue. After I checked with Dan Brown’s work, I decided it was Mary Magdalene (read ‘The Da Vinci Code’ to learn more) and started searching for a Mary Magdalene church somewhere in Venice. But C made me give up on that idea quickly. He said it was a different Mary and I shouldn’t focus on the church, because it doesn’t exist anymore.

A different Mary… Did you know there were tens of Mary’s all around Venice? Yeah, it wasn’t very easy to find the right one. Especially near a non-existing church. But it was all I got. First, I looked for a ruined one. I found some ruins, but then realized they were on Torcello island, which is nowhere near any of the stations. So then I checked for a place that used to be a church. All I got was "Santa Maria Della Salute", which used to be a church and is a hospital now. But it was too far away.

So after C gave me another clue, it turned out that there used to be a church where the railway station is now. But it was demolished. The only things left from it were its name (Santa Lucia) and the statue in question.

So here I was, getting off the bus in Venice, heading to the railway station right away to find my treasure. I had to cross the "verre" to reach it.

"verre"

A few more steps and I could see the "ferre".

"ferre"

And there, on the square in front of it was the statue.

"a very pure lady"

I started examining the bottom of it the minute I got there. I circled the statue a couple times. There were some people sitting on it, so they made it harder. After I checked every possible whole, I realized the treasure wasn’t there.

I was very disappointed, of course. After all the researches and excitement, I was really hoping, I’d find it. But I guess my treasure was found by someone else.

In the end – It’s not the result that matters but the journey.

The end.*

*some small details were changed for privacy purposes

In the Greek Sunshine (Greece)

Trip Details

Where: Ofrinio Beach, Greece

When: 21-23rd September 2011
 

A couple of days in the Greek sunshine were a great idea for a September weekend. It wasn't too hot, the water was still great and here weren't many people. 

 

We went to Ofrinio Beach - a small village on Aegean Sea. There's not much to see or do there other than rest and enjoy the sun. So we did.

 

Greece

Hey, there!

I pack my bag and travel a lot. But what's the fun if I don't share it? :)

I'd like to "take" you with me on some of my trips. The bus leaves from here every now and then.

Hop on! ;)