Say “Caio Bella” to Verona

by Elizabeth Gehrman

In the last lines of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet,” Romeo’s father mourns the loss of his son’s true love by vowing to raise a gold statue to her memory in her hometown of Verona, Italy.

Today, there is no gold statue of Juliet in Verona, but there is a bronze one. It stands in front of the balcony — yes, that balcony — of 23 Via Cappello, the house that was officially recognized by the city government in 1905 as the one the Capulets lived in when their only child and her young lover united their warring families in grief. No one knows how the tradition got started, but it is said that tourists who rub the statue’s right breast will return to visit Verona another day.

This may seem silly, but if you’ve been to this romantic place, you will no doubt try just about anything to insure that you see it again.

Located in northern Italy’s Veneto region, Verona is older than Venice, to its east, and second only to Rome in its collection of sites dating from the Roman Empire. Because of its strategic location — it links Milan to Venice and Italy to central Europe via the Brenner pass — Verona has incorporated many influences over the years. It began life as an Etruscan village, and has been ruled not only by the Romans, but also by the German barbarians, the Venetians, the French under Napoleon and the Austrians. It even became a free commune, during the 12th century.

Today, Verona offers natural beauty, magnificent architecture, good shopping and, of course, superior cuisine. It is an excellent city for strolling, with the pedestrian-only streets and squares along the south side of the curving Adige River holding nearly every location of interest.

The first stop for many visitors is the Basilica San Zeno Maggiore, one of the world’s finest examples of Romanesque architecture. Built between the ninth and 12th centuries, the basilica is dedicated to the city’s patron saint, San Zeno, a black North African who was the eighth bishop of Verona, from 362 to 380, and a tireless champion of Christianity. Beneath the church’s impressive rose window, called “The Wheel of Fortune,” stand one of Verona’s great artistic treasures: a pair of massive cast bronze doors surrounded by painted stone bas reliefs and consisting of 48 panels that illustrate, in primitive style, scenes from the Old and New Testaments. The interior of the basilica is equally impressive, with 12th to 14th century frescos throughout, a marble statue of San Zeno and the center panel of Andrea Mantegna’s famous 1459 triptych “Madonna and Child Enthroned with Saints.”

Other commanding structures — these dating from the Roman era — are the first-century Porta Borari, which was once the gateway to the walled city, and the Ponte Pietra. The latter, a marvel of engineering erected during Augustus’ rule, strides the banks of the Adige and is believed to be the spot on which prehistoric Verona originated.

But the Roman site that commands the attention of visitors and residents alike is the Arena di Verona, the best preserved amphitheater in Italy after the Colosseum. Verona has always taken great pride in its Arena, which was built in 100 A.D. to seat 22,000 — at the time, almost the entire population — for gladiator fights. To Americans, one of the wonders of Europe is that such ancient buildings are still in use, and the Arena is no exception. Its nearly perfect acoustics continue to draw crowds every summer; even if you’re not a fan, seeing an opera here, under the clear Italian sky, is an experience you will not soon forget.

Logically enough, the city center grew up around this cultural icon. Most of Verona’s commercial and social activity takes place in two squares — Piazza Bra and Piazza delle Erbe — linked by the pedestrian mall of Via Giuseppe Mazzini, where sophisticated shoppers can find designer clothing and good deals on leather shoes.

The elongated Piazza Bra holds a cluster of handsome structures, from the neoclassical Palazzo Barbieri, now the town hall, to the circa 1610 Gran Guardia Palace, and is a good spot to soak in some local color while relaxing over a cappuccino. Piazza delle Erbe, where Roman chariot races were once held, is the more bustling of the two squares, partly because it houses a popular farmers market that offers everything from fresh fruits and veggies to fabrics, handbags, and even puppies. The Madonna Verona, erected atop a fountain in 1368, coolly surveys the marketplace in the shadow of several impressive buildings, from Lamberti Tower, the highest belltower in Verona, to the Palazzo Mafei, on which stand statues of Hercules, Jupiter, Venus, Mercury, Apollo and Minerva.

Along one side of Piazza delle Erbe you’ll notice the Arco della Costa — a tall arch with a whale’s rib hanging from it. The enormous bone was unearthed a millennium ago when the square — which apparently spent its prehistory beneath the sea — was under construction. Locals say the rib will fall only on one who has never told a lie; if you feel secure enough to pass beneath it, you will find yourself in the much quieter Piazza dei Signori, or Piazza Dante, in whose center stands a statue of the poet Dante Alighieri, who lived in Verona after his political exile from Florence in 1302.

After stopping for a tipple at the legendary Antico Caffe Dante, continue on to the Scaligeris’ Seigniory, which holds the largest church in Verona, Sant’Anastasia, as well as the elaborate gothic castle and tombs of the della Scala, or Scaligeri, family, which ruled the city from the 13th to early 15th centuries. These symbolism-laden structures are considered one of the greatest medieval monuments in all of Italy.

Just around the corner, at Via delle Arche Scaligeri 2, you will come full circle as you reach the 13th century home of Romeo Montecchi, on whom Shakespeare is said to have modelled the character who gave his young life for love in this loveliest of cities.