Verona was one of the cities that made the short list of places to visit in Italy, mainly because of the summer opera performances staged in the Roman Arena. The city of Verona is centered around the Adige River, which flows through it in an S-shape pattern with the historic center tucked neatly inside one of the river’s curls.

The Arena stands proudly at the entrance to the historic center. It’s one of the best preserved Roman Arenas in the world, and you can stand and gaze at the completely intact pink and white limestone arches that form the inner shell of the Arena. At one end of the stadium a stretch of four taller arches indicate where the outer shell once was. Inside the Arena we saw a performance of Aida, and despite not knowing much about the plot we thoroughly enjoyed it, especially the first two acts which included a lot of colorful set dressings and exciting choreography. It was really incredible to be sitting on the marble grand stands thinking back to the spectators who were sitting in the same spot 2000 years ago.

Besides the Arena, the best known site in Verona is Juliet’s balcony. Even though Shakespeare probably never laid eyes on the balcony and the small courtyard below is jam packed with tourists from all corners of the world, it’s still an enchanting little area.

The rest of the historic center is quite beautiful, filled with interesting architecture, beautiful churches and open squares. In the heart of the old town are the adjoining Piazza Erbe and Piazza dei Signori. Piazza Erbe is a giant, busting square with an open air market in the middle and street traffic inching along the periphery. A glance up in any direction offers rewarding views to the towering Torre dei Lamberti or to one of the many frescoed palazzos. Through the archway from which a whale bone hangs is Piazza dei Signori, a quieter square but equally as beautiful. Palazzos topped with statues and cornicing look down upon a single marble statue of Dante as the centerpiece of the square. Just off Piazza dei Signori are the Arche Scaligeri, which are elaborately carved, gothic sarcophaguses, and the Scala della Ragione, a majestic brick and marble outdoor staircase that leads to the second floor of Palazzo della Ragione.

Throughout Verona there are numerous churches with beautiful facades. The Duomo, in particular, has unique carvings and statues as part of its façade. Across the river over the Pietra Bridge, which dates back to the first and second centuries, is the site of the Roman Theater where ruins still mark its existence. The area is used today for outdoor performances. Walking along the Adige River provides great views back in to the city. A particularly charming spot is where the river curves between the two curls of the S at Castelvecchio, an old defensive fortress covered with rows upon rows of brick cornicing. The Scaligero Bridge traverses the Adige at Castelvecchio, and just like the fortress, it’s laced with brick cornicing.

Walking the streets of this beautiful and historic city it’s no wonder Shakespeare called it “fair Verona.”

For more pictures from Verona, click here.

On Saturday the Mediterranean Tall Ships arrived in Genova for a four day stay. It’s the last stop after a three week tour along the coast of Spain, France and Italy. 50,000 people flooded the port area to admire the ships and to check out the various events and exhibitions being held in celebration. The ships range in age from less than one year old to more than 160 years and range in size from about 10 meters to 100 meters. Most are open to the public to board during the day. The main attraction is the Amerigo Vespucci, a giant 3 masted Italian Navy training ship built in 1931.

Back on land, an Americas Cup racing boat, complete with 15 foot rudder, has been set up so you can really get a feel for the ship’s height. An open air market, which attracts specialty food vendors and artisans from across Italy, fills the open space in Piazza Caricamento opposite the aquarium. Tempting arrays of cheese, spices and pastries are all on display.

Saturday night was capped off by a brilliant fireworks display over the port above the illuminated ships. At 1 o’clock in the morning when the fireworks began, it felt like most of the 50,000 spectators from the day were still there to watch the show. On a weekend like this, you would never think that 15 years ago, not only was this area devoid of development, but the public couldn’t even access the harbor front.

As part of our journey to Berlin we found ourselves with a few hours of time for a stop-over in Milan, so we decided fit in a little site seeing. Originally we wanted to see Di Vinci’s Last Supper, but reservations are necessary, and they book up weeks in advance. Instead we went to the city center to see the Duomo, the Gothic-style cathedral which is the second largest church in Italy. The Duomo is easily one of the most beautiful buildings in all of Europe. The white marble facade, with patterned tiers carved of the surface, radiates in the sunshine, and the spindle-like spires, each topped with a different statue, rise up from innumerable points along the roof as if piercing the sky. As you walk around the cathedral and view it from different angles, the spires, scalloping and other embellishments combine to form new and mesmerizing patterns.

The massive cathedral took nearly 500 years to construct with work beginning in the 14th century, continuing through the renaissance and on to Napoleons reign until finally culminating in the 19th century. Now, restoration work has begun, and when we saw the Duomo the bottom half of the façade was covered in scaffolding, but that did little to diminish the magnificence of the building.

Inside, the dark interior is vast and expansive, providing the perfect atmosphere for the stained glass windows to stand out. When the sun shines just right, rays of colored light stream through the air and illuminate points on the giant columns and floor in a kaleidoscope of color.

Palazzo Rosso is one of three mansions that make up a museum complex on La Strada Nuova, or “the new street,” so named in the 16th and 17th centuries when wealthy families wished to distinguish themselves from the more crowded historic center and built this wide avenue lined with stately mansions. Today, this street is called via Garibaldi and it’s part of a network of historic streets in Genova that are on UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

The first floor of Palazzo Rosso houses 16th and 17th century paintings from the Brignole-Sale collection, the family that built the mansion. The wealthy family members were quite the patrons of art, and their collection includes works by Van Dyck, Veronese and Genovese artists. On the second floor, the attraction is the rooms themselves, which are full of well preserved frescos. Some rooms are covered floor to ceiling and wall to wall with gentle pastel colors and whimsical scenes of cherubs and gods.

The unexpected draw for Palazzo Rosso, though, is the incredible views afforded from the small rooftop lookout. Palazzo Rosso is three giant stories tall, and the cathedral roof adds at least another story. Via Garibaldi, on which Palazzo Rosso is situated, is at the top end of centro storico, which slopes down to the harbor. Behind Via Garibaldi the residential district of Castelletto is built into the steep hillside. Everywhere you turn there is something to see, and because the Palazzo is in the middle of the city all the sites feel much more immediate than they do from more distant vantage points in the hills.

A British movie is being filmed right here in Genova, and it stars none other than Colin Firth. The other day we stumbled upon a scene being filmed right in our neighborhood. It had attracted quite a crowd of spectators. Here you can see a sound guy holding a microphone and perhaps the director talking to the actors around the car. We hear there may be a shoot at Piazza Cavour, right where we live, so we’ll be on the lookout for that. Also, according to IMDB, the movie is also being filmed in Boston.  The movie is provisionally called Genova, so be on the look out for it in the next year or so!

Savona  is a historic city about 25 miles east of Genova. Throughout the middle ages Genova and Savona were great rivals. Today, Savona has pleasant nice of sights and areas to enjoy, such as the old palazzos and narrow streets in the historic center, the arcaded shopping street Via Paleocapa, the harbor area full of open air restaurants, and a sunbather filled beachfront.

One of the most charming aspects about Savona is that it is relatively tourist free. On a sunny Saturday afternoon we were snapping photos in the historic center when a local resident approached us. He explained that he was a volunteer at the Cattedrale di Nostra Signora Assunta, the main cathedral, and went on to spout off a deluge of historic facts about Savona as he pointed out a few sights of interest we never would have noticed on our own. It’s not uncommon for local residents to jump at the chance to share their knowledge of their hometown with visitors, especially in cities that don’t see many tourists.

Some Savona History

The rivalry between Savona and Genova can be traced back over 2000 years to Roman times when the two cities backed different sides in the Punic wars. During medieval times, when rivalries between independent city-states were common, Genova and Savona, two great maritime powers, were at odds. The rivalry culminated when Genova conquered Savona in 1528 and constructed a large defensive fortress named Priamar at the edge of town. In order to build the Priamar the Genovese leveled the part of the city closest to fortress, including a beautiful cathedral and monastery. The remains have been excavated and are now an archaeological site. It’s said that Priamar was built as much for defense against attacks from the sea as it was against the city of Savona itself. Testament to this were cannons pointing towards the city rather than the sea.

Giuseppe Mazzini, an important figure in the Risorgimento, the effort to unify Italy into a sovereign nation, was imprisoned in Priamar for a time. Even Napoleon has passed through the town.

Perhaps the most interesting piece of history is that Savona is birthplace to two Popes, Julius II and Sixtus IV. Both were from the noble Rovere family. The Sistine Chapel in Rome was built for Pope Sixtus IV (Sistine derives from Sixtus). Savona, however, built the first Sistine chapel in honor of Pope Sixtus IV, and it was the chapel in Savona that inspired the one in Rome.

To see more of our pictures from Savona click here.