Verona is indeed what it claims to be: a very romantic city. There were so many couples, both young and old. Couples with kids, couples with dogs and couples with Moncler down jackets. Ah, and ladies with fur coats! “Well, Verona is one of the richest cities in Italy,” one friend from Milan said about my last remark on the fur coats. And this statement was true all the way. This was my first visit to the city of love, but I could tell it managed to mix up tradition and commercialism quite well. The walls, streets and monuments blended surprisingly well with shops like Sephora and Louis Vuitton. Two days were clearly enough to enjoy the streets and sights of Verona and here goes some scenes from the touristic city. Walking along Piazza Bra is an obvious must since it is the main starting point to any other monument, street or cathedral.
베로나는 이탈리아에서 가장 부자도시 중 하나. 그래서인지 아니면 그냥 유행인지, 밍크코트 입은 어머니들이 엄청 많았다. 10명 중 8명은 입는 정도. 그리고 역시나 로미오와 줄리엣의 도시답게 커플들도 많다. 어린 커플, 나이가 지긋하신 커플, 강아지와 함께한 커플, 아가와 함께 온 커플 등등. 조금 실망스러운 부분이 있었다면 생각보다 굉장히 상업적인 도시였다는 것. 길거리들 대부분이 옷가게들과 백화점 등으로 붐빔. 크지 않은 도시라 이틀이면 충분하다. 만남의 장소라고도 불리는 피아자 브라, 혹은 브라 광장. 만남의 장소답게 주변에는 카페와 음식점들로 붐비는데 여기서는 왠만하면 먹지 않을것을 추천.
The arena is beautiful, even with the modern star showering out of it. It’s actually the third largest of its kind in Italy. Like any other city, the restaurants and fast food joints lining up the main piazzas are a big no no. Not only are they pricy, the food is so not worth it so don’t even bother. It may require more walking and searching, but (almost) any smaller/bigger osteria will prove to be so much better.
Juliet’s house is one of the most popular places, and it’s quite easy to find because at one point, you find yourself walking in line with other people all heading the same way. This isn’t actually Juliet’s house, since Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is fiction, but thanks to the airy, romantic (?) balcony that was added in during the 1930s and the former resident of the house by the very similar surname Cappello, it has been (conveniently) appointed as the house/balcony/museum of the tragic maiden by the city of Verona. (The plot of Romeo and Juliet goes way back than Shakespeare’s version. There was the Italian novella, folk tale and even a short verse from Dante’s Divine Comedy. The characters and specific plots differ, but the main plot of two lovers and their feuding families are similar, making Shakespeare’s version not the ultimate, but simply the most well-known.)
줄리엣의 집, 또는 발코니. 어느 순간 모두들 한 방향으로 가고 있는 것을 발견, 모두 줄리엣을 보러 가는 것. 사실 여긴 실제 줄리엣의 집은 아니고 줄리엣가와 비슷한 성을 가진 카펠로가가 살던/운영하던 여관이었는데 발코니가 로맨틱한 관계로 베로나 시에서 집을 통째로 사버리고 줄리엣의 발코니라고 칭하면서 역사가 시작된 것. 발코니 자체도 19030년대에 따로 설치된 것이다. 사실 셰익스피어의 로미오와 줄리엣이 원조는 아니다. 비슷한 내용, 주제 그리고 주인공들이 그 전 이탈리아의 전설이나 동화 등에 이미 등장. 단테의 신곡에서도 둘의 이름이 등장하기도 한다. 단지 훨씬 많이 알려지고 상업화되었을 뿐.
Touching the breast of Juliet’s statue means forever love, but I found this a bit uncomfortable so I stayed away. Now come to think of it, I would have gotten trampled (by so many men) anyway.
발코니 근처에 줄리엣의 동상이 있다. 가슴을 만지면 사랑이 영원히 이루어진대서 가슴 부분만 반질반질. 남자들의 눈이 이글이글. (여자들도 마찬가지)
There’s also Romeo’s house, but it was a pretty sad place. There was almost nothing, just a gate and this.
로미오의 집도 있긴하다. 하지만 지금은 개인 저택으로 사용되고 있어 줄리엣 발코니와는 다르게 사람들이 문앞에서만 서성거리고 있음. 다들 “여기 맞아? 아니야? 어디? 이거?” 우리도 어색하게 주변을 둘러보고 서성이다가 나왔다.
Favorite spot was Piazza delle Erbe, which was lovely. It was once a forum during the Roman Empire and it still has remains of the ancient Roman vibe. The oldest monument is the fountain, which shows off a very elegant statue Madonna Verona. (The original lost its arms and head but was later restored). It dates back to 380 AD. Behind the fountain, there is St. Mark’s Lion, which is the symbol of the Republic of Venice. The frescoes on the buildings were amazing, namely the Mazzanti houses, and we couldn’t take our eyes off them. According to history, the nobles who owned these palaces showed off their wealth and power through such frescoes. Hence, Verona’s old nickname: the painted city. Now on the square there is a souvenir market where you can find things like snacks, refreshments, hats, shorts, hoodies, bells, masks and dolls.
가장 예뻤던 에르베 광장. 로마제국의 영향을 받아 전체적으로 로마인의 느낌이 물씬. 가장 유명한 것은 바로 중앙에 있는 분수인데, 분수 가운데에 서 있는 여인은 베로나 성녀. 무려 380 AD에 세워졌다 (팔과 머리가 잘려나갔었지만 후에 다시 만들어짐). 분수외에도 주변 건물들의 프레스코들이었는데 과거 이 건물들에 살고 있던 상류층들이 자신의 부와 권력을 뽐내기 위해 프레스코를 그려냈다고 한다. 색들이 약간 바래고 많이 지워지긴했지만 그때 당시 베로나의 분위기를 느낄 수 있었던 부분. 역시 부자동네.
And of course there are always people behind the scene, like this gentleman who whistled a tune while keeping the streets clean.
Traveling also means eating out most of the time, and so because we didn’t want to spend too much time in a restaurant for lunch, we stopped by a little wine bar, also known as an osteria, called Osteria Torre del Gardello, and had some famous Valpolicella wine with a cheese plate. (The osteria opened on Dec. 28, 2013, so it was really, really new!) The wine was amazing. Valpolicella is a wine region of Verona and it ranks right after Chianti in the entire Italian DOC wine production. Which means it’s really good. We love Valpolicella anyway. It was actually the first wine we had on our first date, so all in all, it was a special choice.
발폴리첼라는 베로나의 와인지대. 깊고 진한 레드와인으로 유명한 곳이다. 그래서 역시나 베로나에서는 발폴리첼라. 평상시에도 좋아하는 와인이기도 하다. 문을 연지 얼마안되서 사이트도 없다는 치즈 바 Osteria Torre del Gardello에 가서 와인이랑 치즈로 점심을 때움. 때웠다라는 표현을 쓰기엔 치즈가 엄청 많았다는 즐거운 사실. 줄리엣의 집과 같은 via Cappello이지만 반대쪽.
For dinner we went to Bella Napoli, which was recommended by our b&b host. (There are two places, but they are practically the same place. Bella Napoli 1 and 2, if you will). It was actually a bit away from the main attractions and closer to our b&b, but it was packed and the pizza was quite good and very fast. The b&b we stayed in called b&b forever (via Luigia Poloni, 17-37122, Verona, info@foreververona.it, the website may not work yet) was very new (opened three months ago) and was led by a painter named Luigi Gallo. It was clean, pleasant and close to Piazza Bra, which later became a huge plus for us travelers who were too tired to walk any longer.
생각보다 호텔이 많지 않고 있어도 가격이 엄청 비쌌던 베로나. 우리는 그래서 결국 b&b를 택했는데 처음이었음에도 불구하고 기대보다 훨씬 좋았다. 이탈리아 도시라면 유명한 음식이 하나나 두개정도는 있기 마련인데 베로나는 와인말고는 특별히 유명한 것은 없는 느낌. 감사하게도 b&b 주인님이 추천해준 벨라 나폴리를 갔었는데 성공적. 같은 이름으로 된 가게가 두개가 있는데 사실 같은 곳이다. 엄청 크고 빨라서 늘 사람들이 북적북적. 중심가와 조금 떨어져 있지만 일단 맛있어서 두번이나 갔었다. 1미터짜리 피자도 있었는데 다 먹을 자신이 있다면 추천.
- Osteria Torre del Gardello
- Bella Napoli
- Juliet’s balcony (via Cappello, 23)
- Romeo’s house (via delle Arche Scaligeri, Verona)
- b&b forever (via Luigia Poloni, 17-37122, Verona, info@foreververona.it)
All photos by rachelsanghee