You fell in love. You didn't know if it was because it was allegedly the city where Shakespeare based Romeo and Juliet on, or the historic architecture, but Verona was ever charming — so picturesque and romantic, so rich in history and traditions.
As you walked around, you discovered the marks left by the passage of every age and people, from the first settlements of the Neolithic era to the period of maximum splendor of the Roman Empire, as Ignazio so delightfully portrayed. It was like being in an open-air museum, where everywhere you looked at was quite amazing and photo worthy.
Ignazio took you, your daughter and your mum to hidden corners of the enchanting city and the surrounding areas — places full of history and culture, places that astounded you, like the beautiful historic bridges criss-crossing the Adige River. You learned that Romans had designed Verona inside a bend of the waterway, which worked as natural defence, and today that area corresponded to the core of the city and was connected to the rest of the city by those bridges — highly impressive bridges, symbolically embracing the old town.
Ignazio walked you through beautiful narrow paths that led to some stunning panoramic views of the city, like the Piazzale Castel San Pietro and the Santuario Madonna di Lourdes, a beautiful church located high up on a quiet hill. There weren't that many visitors up there, so it was so very peaceful.
As you passed old houses that belonged to the historic noble families of Verona, surrounded by olive groves and vineyards, you learned that the range of wines was so incredibly diverse that in the city it was normal to drink only wine from Verona.
You stopped for lunch in the warm and informal atmosphere of a lovely old country house—surrounded by its own private farmland, vineyards and orchards—with wonderful views of the city, where you enjoyed some mouth-watering specialties like fresh pasta and traditional recipes of Garda Lake fishes. At the end, it was impossible to resist the typical homemade Italian desserts.
When, later on, you reached the historic center, Ignazio told that it had been designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO for both its urban structure and architecture. After visiting the impressive Duomo's cathedral and the super tall Lamberti bell-tower, you reached the Piazza delle Erbe and stopped in front of a marble fountain as you kept consulting the guidebook you'd previously bought for the trip.
"It says here we shouldn't be too far from Juliet's house," you said, referring to the home where the Cappelletti family is said to have lived.
"Ah yes, Casa di Giulietta."
"I know they might have only been figments of Shakespeare's imagination, but—"
"But never underestimate the power of storytelling," Ignazio said, finishing your thought.
"Exactly." You nodded. "It says we should look for a graffiti-covered sign post to get to the house."
"That's right." Then he read over your shoulder, "It also says that Shakespeare never even visited Verona." He lifted the book out of your hands and continued reading while following you through the crowded streets. "And that the balcony was added by the local government in the 1930s to increase tourism."
"Shhh," you shushed him, ignoring his dose of reality. While it was true that Romeo and Juliet were likely nothing more than fictional characters, their actual existence was inconsequential. The thousands of tourists who flocked to the thirteenth-century home each year went not to stand on the actual balcony where Juliet caught Romeo's eye, but to experience, even for a moment, what that balcony represented.
YOU ARE READING
SHADES OF LOVE
Chick-Lit~Sequel to Boschetto's Fifty Shades Darker~ Little did you know that the mysterious and intense man who had swept you off your feet since day one, making you feel you were the light in his life, was a well-known figure in his home country and abroad...
