Piazza Bra is one of the largest squares in Europe, dominated by the Arena and made precious by some historical buildings. The square takes its name from the German word breit, which means wide. In Piazza Bra there is the liston, the pavement in pink marble of Valpolicella, the same one used to build the Roman Amphitheatre. On the liston, people love to meet, walk and chat, before to sit down at a bar for a coffee or an aperitif. A tradition that goes back in the past because already Goethe, in his Italian Journey essay, wrote “..on the pavement of the Bra a multitudeof people used to walk.” In addition to the Arena, in the square you can find the Gran Guardia Palace place for exhibitions and events and Palazzo Barbieri town hall. Where: Piazza Bra, 37121 Verona VR
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Lamberti Tower, Torre dei Lamberti, is a good place to get an overview of Verona. Climb the stairs to the top (or pay an extra euro to take the elevator most of the way) and you'll have fantastic views of the city and beyond. The medieval bell tower was started in the 12th century and was raised a few times after that until it reached its final height of 84 meters. It's just off Piazza delle Erbe (you can see it towering above the square), near the Palazzo della Ragione. Where: Via della Costa, 1, 37121 Verona VR
The legend says that, during the Adige inundation in 589, the water stopped on the doorway of this church built on the site of burial of Bishop Zeno. Saint Zeno, with its African origins, was the eighth bishop of Verona (about 362-380) and converted the city to Christianity. This church is one of the most important examples of Romanesque architecture in Italy and its actual appearance seems to date back to the XII century. San Zeno keeps the body of the Saint and it’s rich of paintings and sculptures from the XII to the XVI century. A particular attention deserves the Altarpiece of San Zeno painted by Andrea Mantegna, which is the first example of Sacred Conversation with the Madonna and Child at the center. From left you can see St. Peter with the keys, St Paul with the sword, St. John the Evangelist with roseate dress, San Zeno in Bishop’s dresses, Saint Benedict with the monk’s dress, San Lorenzo with a gridiron, St. Gregory the Great dressed like the Pope and San John the Baptist with the typical dress as a hermit in the desert. You can understand that this is a conversation because the direction and gestures give the impression that the saints are talking to each other. Where: Piazza San Zeno, 2, 37123 Verona VR
From Piazza delle Erbe walk through Arco della Costa, an arch with a whale rib hanging from it, into Piazza dei Signori, a small square surrounded by monumental buildings. In the center is a statue of Dante and perched atop buildings around the square are more famous signori. This square was once the seat of the city's public institutions and you'll see the Palazzo del Capitaniowith its tower, the 15th-century Loggia del Consiglio that was the town hall, and the 14th century Palazzo della Prefettura, formerly the Palazzo del Governo that was a residence of the Scaligeri family. Where is it: Piazza dei Signori, 22, 37121 Verona VR
The greatest and most spectacular medieval edifice in Verona.It was constructed in order to defend Verona’s people and also to have a possible escape-route. If you look at it closely, the Ponte Scaligero, is asymmetrical and slopes down towards the Adige’s left bank, so as to facilitate a quick “get-away”. During the Venetian domination, the bridge was further fortified to defend it with cannons. During the Napoleonic Wars the castle was damaged by French troops. The bridge was destroyed by the retreating German army in 1945 and rebuilt in 1949. Under the Austrians, Castelvecchio was turned into barracks. In 1923 the castle was restored, as well as in 1963-1965 Today, it’s also home to a museumof art, sculpture, coins, and other artifacts with a collection of paintings that includes pieces by northern Italian masters Mantegna, Bellini and Pisanello. The main restoration of the castle, in 1957, gave the museum its actual structure, with 29 rooms. Where it is: Corso Castelvecchio, 2 Verona. Opening hours: every day 8,30- 19,30; Monday 13,30-19,30
Ticket price: Standard € 6.00 Reduced: - € 4.50 (groups minimum 20 persons, students 14-30 years old and over 60) - € 1.00 (Schools and young people 8 - 13 years old ) - € 1.00 the 1° Sunday of the month for everyone (from January to May and from October to December) - Free entrance with the Verona Card. The Verona Arena is a Roman amphitheatre in Piazza Bra in Verona, Italy built in the first century. Still remarkably well preserved, and today it’s home to Verona’s opera festival. The building itself was built in AD 30 on a site which was then beyond the city walls. At that time Verona was famous for “The ludi” (shows and games) and spectators came from many other places, to witness them. The incredible round façade of the building was originally composed of pink and withe limestone from Valpolicella, but after a major earthquake in 12th century, the stone was quarried for re-use in other buildings. Something that you may not believe is that opera productions had not used any microphones or loudspeakers until an electronic sound reinforcement system was installed in 2011. Morevoer in recent times, the arena has also hosted several concerts of international rock and pop bands, among which Bruce Springsteen, Laura Pausini, Pink Floyd, Alicia Keys, One Direction, Simple Minds, Duran Duran, Deep Purple, The Who, Sting, Pearl Jam, Muse, Paul McCartney and many other. Where it is: Piazza Bra, 1, Verona
It was once the town's forum during the time of the Roman Empire. Nowadays is still the vibrant heart of Verona. It is home to a market where most sellers selling souvenirs and trinkets and in the evening, it fills with locals and tourists sipping Campari and enjoying aperitivi at outdoor cafes. The northern side of the square is occupied by the ancient town hall, the Torre dei Lamberti, the Casa dei Giudici ("Judges' Hall") and the frescoed Mazzanti Houses. On the shortest side, features the Palazzo Maffei, decorated by statues of Greek gods in Baroque style. Numerous of its buildings facing the square have maintained façade frescoes. On the southern side is the crenllated Casa dei Mercanti, now the seat of the Banca Popolare di Verona. Other buildings, are reminiscent of medieval tower-houses. The most ancient monument is the, surmounted by a statue called Madonna Verona, which is however a Roman sculpture dating to 380 AD fountain it was built in 1368 by Cansignorio della Scala. Towards Via Cappello is another column, with a 14th-century aedicula with reliefs of the Virgin and the Saints Zeno, Peter and Christopher. Where it is: Piazza delle Erbe, Verona
The House of Juliet, where the actual Cappello family once lived, is a vacuous and quivering mob scene. The tiny romantic courtyard is a scenic spectacle in itself, with travelers from all over the world posing on the almost believable balcony, and taking pictures of each other rubbing Juliet’s bronze breast, in the hope of getting lucky in love. Countless letters addressed to “Juliet, Verona, Italy” arrive to the city and there are even volunteers to respond to these letters, proudly calling themselves “Secretaries of Juliet”. They are getting even busier as these lovesick people keep pouring their hearts and feelings in these letters from all around the world, thanks to the movie “Letters to Juliet”. The protagonist is a girl (Amanda Seyfried) who finds a letter while visiting the House of Juliet and travels the whole of Italy just to reunite the author with her long lost love. Where it is: Via Cappello, 23 Verona Opening hours:
From Tuesday to Sunday 8.30 AM until 6.45 PM Monday 1.30 PM until 6.54 PM |
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