Monday October 15
Up, but not quite as early as we planned. We had a big day of site seeing ahead and were ready to roll. After our morning macchiati, Mark and I headed across the street from our apartment to check out the neighborhood church St Eufemia. I thought it would be a little church so when we walked into a giant one it was a surprise! It was really beautiful; the current church was built in the 14th century, though the original was probably from the 11th or 12th centuries. I even saw a painting that included Santa Monica, which I have never seen before, so that was extra fun!
We went around the corner to check out a little deli we had seen but never been in because it was always too early or too late. They had a great variety of vegetables and salads, whole roast chickens turning on a spit, wines and olive oils, bread, cheese and salumi. We grabbed a few things for breakfast and went back to eat before picking mom and dad up for the day. We decided then to go back later and get fixings for dinner so we could have a lighter meal in the comfort of our apartment. It was a great idea!
We got mom and dad and walked to the Duomo. The next stop on our itinerary was St Anastasia. It was raining the whole time and we were beginning to get rather wet. We hoofed it over to Torre dei Lamberti and climbed 289 steps to the view platform. We spent some time up there enjoying the panaramic vistas and then decided it was time for lunch. We wandered away from the touristy center and looked for a place to eat and finally found a dark little place that looked good and we enjoyed a light lunch, out of the rain. After lunch we started out for the next site on our itinerary. But wait! We spotted an artisinal gelato shop and of course we had to go in! Support the local independents, right? Right! It was so delicious, I had the saffron (yes, really) and it tasted like saffron! Mark wasn’t as fond of it as I was. He enjoyed his flavor, though. We started out again and lo and behold, an espresso bar! So we refueled and finally made it to the Teatro Romano and Museo Archeological.
It had now been a long day of walking in the rain from site to site, and mom and dad decided to go back to their B&B for some rest before dinner. Mark and I decided to use the time we had left to see more, so we kept going. We were pretty soaked, my coat was like a sponge, and as were his shoes. But it was warm, and just water, so we didn’t care too much. We walked along the river and through a newer neighborhood, then crossed a bridge to St Zeno’s church.
Next was the Castel Vecchio bridge and then, luckily, Mark looked at the time. It was 5:45! We had to meet mom and dad back at our apartment in 45 minutes! We walked more quickly to get to the deli and pick out dinner. We were supposed to have pre-ordered the roast chicken, though we didn’t know that. When I asked for one she told us the next bach would’t be ready until 7:30, and we could get one then if we wanted to. So we ordered it, picked out all the accompaniments and wine, and Mark returned at 7:30 to pick it up. It was a lovely dinner, lighter than we had had (which was a really good thing) and casual and fun. Then off to bed for an early morning of packing and moving on to Cortona.
Tuesday, October 16
Farewell Verona, you were a lovely city for us. Up, packed and out, first espresso of the day and hopping a bus to the train station. On the train to Firenze, short wait and on the train to Cortona. Here we come! The entire group arrives this evening, we will enjoy a “getting to know you” dinner at their fabulous agrigurismo ‘Poggio al Sole‘ made by the wonderful Benedetta. Wednesday we start the tour and away we go!
Ciao for now!
