Food, Family & Friends in Verona

After three months of lousy cups of coffee and packages of instant sugar+coffee+whitener mixes, it was about time for a quality cup of joe.

The moka pot was all I found in the apartment. I guess I better learn how to use this thing! 

One Youtube lesson later and I was drinking a mug of heaven.

Time to explore Verona. We chose this city as our home base in Italy primarily because of its location. It's a good hub from which to explore the surrounding area, and it's not too far from our arrival/departure city of Milan, and it would allow us to daytrip into Venice, thus avoiding some crazy high hotel prices. 

But we didn't realize how beautiful a place it is - it's an extremely picturesque town with a compact center and lots of sights. We definitely lucked out in our choice.

It's full of postcard views, and even if you don't know what you're looking at, you don't care. We had fun just wandering around at our own pace, taking lots of breaks to soak in the atmosphere. The weather is great - sunny but not too hot (a change after what we've had over the last few weeks).

The Adige river snakes its way through the city, and several ancient bridges - some pedestrian only - make for great photos. Doesn't hurt that the model is a hottie, either.

No Shirley, we can't take it home with us.

Italian style - a different take on the tow truck.

God, I'm not looking forward to the kids' first dental check-up when we get home. Ice cream, popsicles, and now gelato - a recurring theme on this world tour.

And in case Shirley and I needed any reminder that we haven't done any cardio during this whole trip - a 10K race through Verona. Can't think of a nicer setting, but the cobblestones would be murder on the ankles.

As some of you may know, Verona is the setting for Romeo & Juliet. Whether the Capulets and Montagues ever really existed, the city has nevertheless capitalized on Shakespeare's little play, and many attractions relate to the story's star-crossed lovers. Here is a quiet moment under Juliet's balcony, shared with only about two hundred others.

Hey kids, this is Toys 'R Us for daddy. These stores are a dream come true, with a huge selection of meats, cheeses, wines and other treats. While not cheap, it still pretty reasonable and the quality is amazing.

Now admittedly, this travel blog tends to show the best-of-the-best, which probably makes you think that everyday is a slice of paradise for the Boltwoods. So just so you don't think our trip is one perfect day after another, I can assure you things don't always go as planned. Our excursion to Villa Pisani - on the Brenta Canal near the town of Padova was a complete failure. I chose it because it has a very impressive garden maze, something the kids were dying to see, and which can be difficult to find. 

But it rained today. 

Hard. 

And somehow this makes the maze non-navigable? Grrrrrrr.

So two hours there by train and bus, and two hours back by bus and train, and about $100 out of pocket. We were all pretty bummed (and soaked, too!). Hard to find any positives in this one.

Okay, maybe one positive. With extra olives.

But the next day saw things get back on track quickly. My good friend Darren and his wife Jacqui, who are living in Zurich these days, came down on their long weekend to visit us here in Verona. So nice to be among friends (even if it's just so they can take photos with all four of us in them - such a rarity!!).

The ancient Roman arena in Verona is the third largest in Italy (after the coliseums in Rome and Caputo), and one of the best preserved. We're about 6 weeks too early for opera season, but each summer this arena basks in the sounds of Aida, Carmen, Madame Butterfly and others. Today it reverberated with the screams of an American cheerleading squad of 15 year old girls. Wow, two bad days in a row.

When you take the kids out of school for six months, you should have an alternative curriculum planned. Today is art history class at Castelvecchio.

3:00. School's over. Mom's on pick-up duty.

As much as I like castles, history, and art - it can make me a bit drowsy. So it's time for an espresso. 

Now Shirley and I are coming to terms with the sticker shock of being in Europe. Italy is ridiculously expensive, but after spending three months in Asia, it seems even worse. However, the cost of a stand-at-the-bar espresso in Italy is actually regulated by the government (my friend Darren has encyclopedic knowledge of this sort of thing) and only costs 1 euro.

Wasn't sure if Owen's skeleton jacket was suitable for the church, but if you take a close look at some of the paintings in there, it was actually quite appropriate. Some pretty gruesome stuff happened in the name of Christianity.

Dinner with Darren and Jacqui was at our apartment - basically a beer and wine tasting event, punctuated by lots of meats, cheeses and pasta. 

Primo

Secondo

Docle and Digestivo (by the way, this is a fantastic wine)

So our first few days in Italy have been wonderful, and a completely different travel experience from the tropical and underwater adventures of Asia. It was really nice to share some of our time here with Darren and Jacqui. It's doubtful we will meet any of our friends before we return to Canada again, so it was a genuine treat.

We have a busy few days ahead before we leave for Greece on Friday - we still have to see Venice, the Gardaland Theme Park, and the Lake District. We saved these until after this past long weekend in the hope of avoiding crowds. Let's hope we have the stamina.

Ciao from Verona!!