Off, by train, to Verona for the day.
Shakespeare placed star-crossed lovers Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet in Verona for good reason: romance, drama and fatal family feuding have been the city's hallmark for centuries. From the 3rd century BC Verona was a Roman trade centre with ancient gates, a forum (now Piazza delle Erbe) and a grand Roman arena, which still serves as one of the world's great opera venues. In the Middle Ages the city flourished under the wrathful Scaligeri clan, who were as much energetic patrons of the arts as they were murderous tyrants.
Under Cangrande I (1308–28) Verona conquered Padua and Vicenza, with Dante, Petrarch and Giotto benefitting from the city's patronage. But the fratricidal rage of Cangrande II (1351–59) complicated matters, and the Scaligeri were run out of town in 1387. Venice took definitive control in 1404, ruling until Napoleon's arrival in 1797.
The city became a Fascist control centre from 1938 to 1945, a key location for Resistance interrogation and transit point for Italian Jews sent to Nazi concentration camps. Today, as the city grapples with its changing identity as an international commercial centre, it has become a Lega Nord (Northern League) stronghold. Yet the city is a Unesco World Heritage Site and a cosmopolitan crossroads, especially in summer when the 2000-year-old arena hosts opera's biggest names.
Piazza Bra - Verona’s main square, the Piazza Brà, is one of the largest squares in Europe. It functions as a kind of arrival hall before you enter the centre of the city. The term “brà” derives originally from the German word “breit” (broad) and refers to the broad square in front of the city gates.
Verona, Art, Love and Music, a monument to Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet at Piazza Bra
The fountain in the park, the Fonatna delle Alpi or Münchner-Kindlbrunnen, was constructed on the occasion of Verona’s twinning with Munich and was sponsored by the Germans. In return a statue of Juliet was erected at the Old Town Hall in Munich. The people of Verona often refer jokingly to the fountain as the “Lemon Squeezer” (struca limoni) because it looks like one with its shape. Also a result of the twinning is a memorial for the displaced Italians into German concentration camps, which is under the trees at Piazza Brà.
Arena di Verona -
Verona is famous for its Roman amphitheatre, the Arena found in the city's largest piazza, the Piazza Bra. Completed around 30 AD, it is the third largest in Italy after Rome's Colosseum and the arena at Capua. It measures 139 metres long and 110 metres wide, and could seat some 25,000 spectators in its 44 tiers of marble seats. The ludi (shows and gladiator games) performed within its walls were so famous that they attracted spectators from far beyond the city. The current two-story façade is actually the internal support for the tiers; only a fragment of the original outer perimeter wall in white and pink limestone from Valpolicella, with three stories remains. The interior is very impressive and is virtually intact, and has remained in use even today for public events, fairs, theatre and open-aired opera during warm summer nights.Opera props we think from "Aida" which is one of the operas being performed this summer in the arena.
Even today, the Piazza Brà is a beautiful and wide square in the heart of Verona with many open spaces and cosy street bars. Many historic buildings from various eras from ancient times to the present surround the square. From your table in one of the bars you can thus enjoy 2,000 years of history. The promenade on the Piazza Brà itself is paved with pink marble from the Valpolicella region.
The Portoni del Brà archway and parts of the medieval city wall enclose the square.
On down the street we came to Piazza dell Erbe which was created as a market place, for commerce and exchange. The Piazza delle Erbe has remained the vibrant heart of Verona. There are many restaurants and market stalls, which offer mainly souvenirs but also fruits and vegetables. The Piazza delle Erbe was also the central square in Roman times – the forum romanum – which played host to Verona’s political, economic and social life.
A poet Berto Barbarani
Market souvenirs
The most ancient monument in the square is the Fountain, with its statue, which is called “Madonna Verona”. It is a Roman statue, with an epigraph dated in the IV century, which asserts that the statue was transferred to the Court around the year 380 with a solemn ceremony. In 1368 the square’s beautiful fountain was built, perhaps by Bonino da Campione.
Many magnificent buildings, including the baroque Palazzo Maffei and the Case dei Mazzanti with its beautiful frescoes inside, surround the square. The Torre del Gardello – a clock tower which was built in 1370 by the Scaliger Cansignorio – is located right next to the Palazzo Maffei. In 1421 a clock face was added to the bell tower to show the citizens the correct time. The winged lion in front of the Palazzo, the Colonia di San Marco, was erected by the Venetians and served as a symbol of Venice’s might.
Not far down the street from the Piazza dell Erbe is Juliet's house.
Juliet’s house (Casa di Giulietta) is one of the main attractions of Verona with the most famous balcony in the world. Every day crowds of people make their way through the narrow archway into the courtyard to admire and photograph the famous balcony. Couples of all ages swear eternal fidelity here in memory of Shakespeare’s play “Romeo and Juliet”.
The courtyard
The graffitied wall as you enter the courtyard.
A walk along the Adige River
The Ponte Pietra, once known as the Pons Marmoreus, is a Roman arch bridge crossing the Adige River in Verona, Italy. The bridge was completed in 100 BC, and the Via Postumia from Genoa to Aquileia passed over it. It is the oldest bridge in Verona. The arch nearest to the right bank of the Adige was rebuilt in 1298 by Alberto I della Scala. Four arches of the bridge were blown up by retreating German troops in World War II, but rebuilt in 1957 with original materials.
Standing on the Ponte Pietra
Our view across the River Adige from where we had a little lunch
The Duomo -
The cathedral itself dates from the 8th century. Prior to this there was a small basilica on the same site, which was replaced by the cathedral after it was destroyed by an earthquake. The new cathedral was called the “Mother Church” – Santa Maria Marticolare.Particularly noteworthy is the facade portal by Master Nicolò with two beautiful bas-reliefs.
The Main Chapel with frescoes painted by Francesco Torbido 1534
The Organ paintings by Felice Brusasorzi 1539-1605
The Baptistry - buit in romanesque forms around 1123 A.D. The Baptismal octagonal font, which was carved from a single block of marble.
The scenes depicted on the panels represent Gospel episodes from the Annunciation until Christ's baptism.
The Chapel of the Madonna of the People
The Madonna with Child by Vincenzo Cadorin 1921
Can't recall which of the chapels this one is among many.
the Capella Nichesola, with its famous altarpiece “Assumption” by Titian. The picture shows the apostles kneeling around Mary’s coffin and the mother of god herself floating in towering clouds. The kneeling and praying apostle to the left represents the artist Sanmicheli.
Beautiful cathedral with many frescoes
On down the river to the next oldest bridge tthe Ponte Scaligero
a beautiful building and roses along the river
Gavi Arch - Originally built in the 1st century BC. by Roman architect Lucio Vitruvio Cerdone, The arch celebrates the splendour of the important Roman Gavia family of Verona.
In 1805 the arch was dismantled by the French troops to enlarge the entrance to the town.
In 1932 the monument was re-assembled next to Castelvecchio where you can see it today.Castelvecchio - It is believed that the castle was built on the location of an earlier Roman fortress. The castle and nearby bridge were built by Lord Cangrande II della Scala, who in 1350 married Elizabeth, the daughter of Louis IV of Bavaria and the Countess of Hainualt, Margaret II. The castle was constructed as a deterrent to attack by powerful neighbors like the Sforzas and Gonzagas and the city state of Venice.
The construction of the castle started in 1354 and Cangrande died in 1359, before it was completed. The fortified bridge over the Adige was designed to let the castle's inhabitants escape north to Tyrol in case of a rebellion or a coup d'etat.
During the time of Venetian rule in the area slits were added to the structure to allow defence by cannons. The fortress was badly damaged during the Napoleonic Wars and Napoleon himself stayed in the castle many times when he visited Verona. Under the later rule of the Austrians the castle was used as barracks and was later restored in 1923.
The fountain is called Acquaria. The round discs in the pool are blown glass bubbles.
The Skaliger or Castelvecchio Bridge is a fortified bridge that was built over the River Adige. The bridge featured segmental arches and when it was originally constructed it had the world's largest span at 48.7 meters.
The bridge was built around 1354 by Lord Cangrande II in order to facilitate escape from his fortress. The construction was solid and the bridge remained intact until the end of the 18th century when French troops destroyed the left bank tower.
and on down the riverr to The Basilica of San Zeno - Romanesque architecture. The church and conven was built on the spot where Saint Zeno was buied, in order to preserve the relics and to honor his memory. Saint Zeno, born in Africa, 8th Bishop of erona, converted the whole town to Christianity.
The grand west facade of San Zeno is made of a warm tufa stone and brick and centers on a large rose window known as the Ruota della Fortuna (Wheel of Fortune), created in 1217-25 by Maestro Brioloto and Adamino da San Giorgio.
The Romanesque cloister, dating from the 12th to 14th centuries, is entered from the north aisle of the church. It has small double columns of red marble and many tombs and monuments.
beautiful and peaceful
The Main Chapel
The frescoes of the triumphal arch and the apse have been attributed to Martino da Verona (end of the 14th century)
The Wooden altarpiece Maesta della Vergine by Andrea Mantegna (1457-1459)
The nave ceiling
What are Frescoes?
a painting done rapidly in watercolour on wet plaster on a wall or ceiling, so that the colours penetrate the plaster and become fixed as it dries.
The method of painting frescoes, used in Roman times and by the great masters of the Italian Renaissance including Giotto, Raphael, and Michelangelo.
frescoes ( by unknown artists (14th and 15th century).
Altar - parts of a romanesque porch demolished in the 13th century. Two knotted columns resting on an ox and a lion, symbols of the Evangelists Luke and Mark. On the walls frescoes by unknown artists (14th and 15th century)..
Frescoe Virgin enthroned with Child, named "White Madonna", by the Giotto school
San Zeno's magnificent bronze doors, dating from the 12th century, are one of the great artistic highlights of Verona. One of the first castings in bronze made since Roman times, they are decorated with 48 panels illustrating biblical stories and the lives of St. Michael and St. Zeno.
The bronze panels were created by multiple unknown artists. Those on the left door, depicting scenes from the New Testament, were created by a German artist around 1100; those on the right, portraying the Old Testament, were made by a local Italian artist in the second half of the 12th century.
The Stational Cross 14th Century by Lorenzo Veneziano anf the Baptismal font by Maestro Brioloto 1217/1225
Frescoes everywhere.
"Laughing St. Zeno", Polychrome statue by an unknown artist (13th century). This statue of the Patron Saint was once placed in a high position, probably above the keystone o the Romanesque triumphal arch.
Many many frescoes in this basilica
Baroque Altar (1621). In the niche Pieta in painted soft stone.
The crypt dates from the 13th century but is supported on ancient columns. It still contains the relics of St. Zeno, now contained in a modern sarcophagus, as well as the tombs of other saints and bishops.
From here we took a cab back to Piazza Bra and, as it was a very hot day, we enjoyed a cold beer and rested our feet before heading back to the train station and home to Bologna.
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