Most people have heard of the city of Verona. This is because it was made immoral in the story of Romeo and Juliet. This is what draws most visitors to the city. But there is also more to this city than that of just the Romeo and Juliet story.
Verona is the second largest city into eh area of Veneto, right after the Venice. They are one of the richer cities and more populated cities in Northern Italy. http://www.offbeattravel.com/verona.html It was also a city that was fought over a lot in the early 1200’s. The current rulers were able to get some of the smaller towns around Verona conquered building up her power. It came under the rule of The Scala Family in 1260 and they were one of the most influential rulers and developers of the city. The city of Verona changed hands many times in 1400” they were adapted into partite Venetian Republic. It stayed apart of the Venetian lands till the end of the 18th century when Napoleon occupy the city for a little while. It was in the 109th century when Verona was reinforced with extra walls because it became an important military and commercial area. Verona became a part of the Kingdom of Italy in 1866 http://www.italytravelescape.com/history-of-verona.htm.
The city has a lot of rich culture to see and experience. In the Plaza Bra there is a Roman amphitheater. It was built around the 1st century and was a large draw for crowds to watch Gladiators. It was at first built outside of the city walls of Verona but later the walls were extended to surround the amphitheater. This amphitheater can seat around 25,000 people. It is currently used as an Opera Theater in which many famous operas are given. This summer some of those include Madame Butterfly and Carmen. http://www.arena.it/en-US/HOMEen.html.
After you would see the Arena a walk down the main street Via Mazzini where some of the more fashionable shops and eateries. This street ends at Via Cappello. This is the famous street that Juliet lives on. This spot has always been popular for lovers but now the wall of letters to Juliet is even more popular now that a movie was made based on the wall. http://www.letterstojuliet-movie.com/. The Shakespearian story is very popular but the origins of this legend did start in Verona.
The legend of Romeo and Juliet started when the Scaligeri were still ruling. The facts that Shakespeare was to take and reinvent his own story from came from the war memories of a Vicenza Luigi da Porto. He wrote of a story that he heard from another archer in the war and it was about two lovers and their death. This was all written down in 1531 and later Shakespeare got a hold of it and made his famous version n 1596. Around the city you can visit the church of Saint Francesco where the lovers were supposedly married which was built in 1230. There is also a Tomb that is supposed to hold the remain of Juliet but this is unknown because funerals were nto given to those who commit suicide. But supposedly the town officials had taken a pity of Juliet and she was able to be buried in a very small and plain coffin. This has been another area for pilgrimage for lovers and believers and the Romeo story. http://www.veronafor2.com/verona.html.
Another interesting thing that Verona houses and it not as popular as Romeo and Juliet. Dante, who wrote The Divine Comedy, spent time in Verona. When he was banished from Florence in 1312 because he was in support of the Empire Party (the Ghibellini). He lived in Verona till 1318 and then came back again in 1320. In this time he made enough of a effect on Verona to have a Plaza named after him. http://www.veronissima.com/sito_inglese/html/topic_dante.html.
The Piazza de Signor or Piazza Dante there is a statue of the famous poet. This statue was built in 1865 and was built to commemorate the famous poet’s exile firm the city of Florence and was invited to live in Verona by Cangrande I http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Europe/Italy/Veneto/Verona-140824/Things_To_Do-Verona-Piazza_dei_Signori_Piazza_Dante-BR-1.html
Overall the city of Verona is a very historical and beautiful place to visit. It was a great day trip from Milan. It is a city that is full of history and has lots of examples of a modern city collaborating with it ancient roots. I would recommend visiting Verona if your are traveling through Northern Italy. It is defiantly a place not to miss.
No comments:
Post a Comment