Saturday morning we traveled from Florence to Verona, the city of Romeo e Giulietta (Romeo and Juliet).
We were given a very brief overview of the city and then turned loose for 2 hours to explore and find lunch. It was not a lot of time but we made the most of it. As you walk thru the city you can see pieces of the old city standing next to newer construction.
We walked to the Amphitheater, it is not as big as the Colesseum but just as impressive.
Built in 30AD, it is still used today for events, now that is built to last!
Even the seats are well preserved.
They wanted 10 EU to get in, so we decided to fight the guard.
We walked the perimeter of the Amphitheater and then looked for a park to have a picnic lunch.
We brought our own lunch including wine, it was very nice.
Everything was great until one of the children decided to feed the pigeons.
After lunch we strolled and ran into Castledelveccio, what a treat. Constructed in the 1300s it is amazing well preserved.
We were free to walk around the castle and across the bridge.
I appreciate that in Europe they allow people to use common sense and don't block off every point of view, even it it is a bit on the risky side. June survived.
Bob found a new friend. That is a real human, just standing there motionless all day...a bit nuts.
It is like going back in time.
It was a fortress.
Castledelveccio has its 'Lock of Love" gate like many other tourist attractions around the world.
Before we headed back to the bus we had to have our afternoon cappuccino and then find our way back....
Verona was a quick stop, but we saw enough to make us want to come back.
We arrived in Venice and boarded a boat for our hotel. Everything in Venice moves by boat. A water Taxi took us to the Bellini Hotel our home for the next two nights.
The Bellini is on the Grand Canal, very nice and different. Old with every room a bit different, staircases that are confusing, we love it.
After getting checked in at the Hotel, we immediately boarded another boat for a short tour of the Grand Canal.
Picture of our Hotel from the Grand Canal.
The Grand Canal is far more Grand than I imagined it to be.
Bob is having all the fun.
The Grand Canal is busy busy, boats are going everywhere, it is lined with shops and huge buildings.
They say the entire city is on wooden piers that
are sinking 1 to 3 mm per year.
We were dropped a the launching point for the Gondolas and boarded Gondola's for a tour of the narrow canals. We were joined in ours with Gary and Paula from Arizona.
40 Years and she is still hanging with me...
The Malloys are also celebrating 40 years, I don't know how Maribeth does it.
Overall the Gondola ride was ok but not what you would envision. The Gondoliers frankly are not very friendly and doing it at night limited what we could see. But we have check that box.
After the Gondola ride, we were supposed to take a water taxi back to the hotel, but we decided to walk and explore. Bob had read about Cicchetti, these are small snacks served at a certain time in the evening, and we tried to find some. Venice is like a mouse maze, narrow alleys that are dark then you pop into a square where there will be a restaurant. GPS is pretty useless in the alleys. We had a great time finding our way around and Eamon turned out to be the best navigator.
Prosecco
Cicchetti
We found a nice spot for Pizza.
This place is beautiful
Holy crap..we found the hotel.
Relaxing in the room for a night cap.
Overall it was another great day.
Sunday we explore and visit island of Burano.
Venice, again why did they settle here? So interesting and very quiet with no automobiles. Wish the Gondola ride had been in daylight but fun anyway.
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