June 24, 2007

Today, I went to Verona with the other teachers and the camp director. Oh my, what a beautiful city! It is over 2,000 years old, and was once a Roman city state. The architecture is extremely well preserved and I think that I may have taken a few too many pictures of the ancient, yet lovely buildings :-) I am often frustrated with my picture taking abilities because I would love to capture the essence of a place, yet am not able to do so with my bumbling skills. Instead, I end up turning about in a 360-degree circle, snapping away, at each rotation. Ohh well, Italy is so beautiful that I am sure it will make up for my picture-taking deficits.

The first place that I visited in Verona was the Roman Arena. It is really magnificient! Although it is ancient, it is in such good condition that it is still used for events today. I am told that listening to an opera or watching a ballet there is an experience like none other. I climbed all the way to the top and was greeted with stunning views of this little city and the surrounding hills...covered in vineyards. The rooftops were red tile, the wrought iron balconies spilled over with ivy and gernaiums, and there were too many church steeples to count. Talk about a view...Italy at its finest, I must say!

I also visited the legendary homes of Shakespeares Romio and Juliet. Romios home was, disapointingly plain, but the courtyard of Juliets home and famed balcony were lovely to behold. Of course, the gift shop on the opposite side of the courtyard seemed to take a bit of the charm out of the setting...but only slightly! Hey, you cannot blame the Italians for being capitalists :-)

The rest of the day was spent exploring the Arab market (filled with the usual knick-knack trinkets) and the narrow streets filled with famed shops (Versace, Dior....and a few less prominent...and more affordable stores!) Unfortunately, there was not enough time to see everything, and so I would love to come back for further exploration. I must say that I would highly recommend visiting this lovely place!