This past weekend was spent in the beautiful city of Verona, Italy. Mary, Rina, and I all took a train in the morning and traveled to the city of tragic love. Upon arriving in Verona, the inviting/glorious sun decided to make a special appearance just for us (it had been raining in Milano for the past week). We made our way out of the train station and decided to just go for a walk around the city with our newly bought map. Just walking around Verona was an adventure. We saw an Egyptian statue replica just sitting on a lawn advertising a restaurant. We saw a sign for Bingo, which I insisted that we come back but we did not have time or the energy to handle serious/seasoned Italian Bingo champions. We saw the city's Colosseum, which looked incredible to me, but to Mary and Rina it was not much compared to Rome's Colosseum.
Then, fate happened. As we were walking towards Giulietta's balcony we came across a German beer festival! This festival was completely legit with people in costumes and traditional music and dancing. We decided that we would have to stop by on our way back to the train station.
We grabbed lunch at a local cafe and headed in search for Giulietta's balcony. One of the most interesting things that I have found in almost any city of Italy that I have traveled to, is that no matter how big or small the city is, there will always be incredible shopping!
We finally made it to the most famous balcony in Shakespearean history and I was amazed. Before you make it into the courtyard area of the balcony there is a little hallway/walkway that is filled with love letters. Some are inscribed with the confession of an undying love for another, some are filled with best wishes and hopes for friends, and others contain wishes for Giulietta to send love to them. This was truly an incredible site to see so many letters in so many different languages. Once I made it through the hall my eyes were drawn upward to a structure that I had only read about in books. I had never imagined that I would be able to view the object of the most tragic love story of all time. Even though it was much smaller than what I had imagined, it was still amazing to have been able to see it.
While in the courtyard of Giulietta's balcony I made my love known. In Europe many people put "love locks" on bridges and various gates in important cities or places special to them. A love lock is an actual lock that is supposed to symbolize or represent your love with another person. Once the lock is secure, the key is thrown in the river so that the love will never break apart. Even though it looks cluttered, the keepers of the different bridges do not remove the locks in respect for the idea of love. I decided that Giulietta's balcony was the perfect place for me to lock my love for my betrothed. I then threw the key in the river off the bridge in Verona. I was very happy to have shared my love for another in the country that has changed me forever.
After we left the bridge we walked around for a little longer before making our way back to the train station. While walking back we saw the great beer festival again and decided to have my very first draft beer. Even though I am not a big fan of beer, it was a fun experience. The music was unique and the dancing was very traditional. We ate pretzels and contemplated on staying forever but decided that we needed to catch the train back.
We were very tired and looking forward to a quiet ride home, but we were in for a real treat. Instead of normal passengers, we were treated with about a million Italian Apennines who were on their way to the annual military reunion festival. For almost the entire train ride, we were treated to the loud friendly singing of traditional Italian drinking songs. They even hummed the national anthem for Rina, Mary, and myself. Mary and I of course were forced to sing, but we had a very nice time watching these crazy old men sing and drink homemade wine.
Even though my time in Verona was brief, it is certainly a trip I will never forget.
ciao ciao
Elle
Then, fate happened. As we were walking towards Giulietta's balcony we came across a German beer festival! This festival was completely legit with people in costumes and traditional music and dancing. We decided that we would have to stop by on our way back to the train station.
We grabbed lunch at a local cafe and headed in search for Giulietta's balcony. One of the most interesting things that I have found in almost any city of Italy that I have traveled to, is that no matter how big or small the city is, there will always be incredible shopping!
We finally made it to the most famous balcony in Shakespearean history and I was amazed. Before you make it into the courtyard area of the balcony there is a little hallway/walkway that is filled with love letters. Some are inscribed with the confession of an undying love for another, some are filled with best wishes and hopes for friends, and others contain wishes for Giulietta to send love to them. This was truly an incredible site to see so many letters in so many different languages. Once I made it through the hall my eyes were drawn upward to a structure that I had only read about in books. I had never imagined that I would be able to view the object of the most tragic love story of all time. Even though it was much smaller than what I had imagined, it was still amazing to have been able to see it.
While in the courtyard of Giulietta's balcony I made my love known. In Europe many people put "love locks" on bridges and various gates in important cities or places special to them. A love lock is an actual lock that is supposed to symbolize or represent your love with another person. Once the lock is secure, the key is thrown in the river so that the love will never break apart. Even though it looks cluttered, the keepers of the different bridges do not remove the locks in respect for the idea of love. I decided that Giulietta's balcony was the perfect place for me to lock my love for my betrothed. I then threw the key in the river off the bridge in Verona. I was very happy to have shared my love for another in the country that has changed me forever.
After we left the bridge we walked around for a little longer before making our way back to the train station. While walking back we saw the great beer festival again and decided to have my very first draft beer. Even though I am not a big fan of beer, it was a fun experience. The music was unique and the dancing was very traditional. We ate pretzels and contemplated on staying forever but decided that we needed to catch the train back.
We were very tired and looking forward to a quiet ride home, but we were in for a real treat. Instead of normal passengers, we were treated with about a million Italian Apennines who were on their way to the annual military reunion festival. For almost the entire train ride, we were treated to the loud friendly singing of traditional Italian drinking songs. They even hummed the national anthem for Rina, Mary, and myself. Mary and I of course were forced to sing, but we had a very nice time watching these crazy old men sing and drink homemade wine.
Even though my time in Verona was brief, it is certainly a trip I will never forget.
ciao ciao
Elle
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