Friday, September 5th, 2025

This morning we checked out of our hotel in Milan and our next stop was Verona. There was a train strike today and we couldn’t get a ticket so we took a bus(Flixbus) from Milan to Verona. It took longer but at least we were able to find transportation!

When we arrived at the bus stop in Verona we walked with our luggage to Verona’s train station which wasn’t far away. Here we took a taxi to our hotel near the historic city center. Hotel Guilietta E Romeo was in a great location.

After checking in and leaving our luggage in our room, we went out for a walk to begin exploring Verona. Our hotel was a block away from the arena. The Verona Arena hosted the Opera festival every summer. People come from around the world to attend. We didn’t realize this was the last few days of the Opera season or we would have tried to get tickets.

We took a walk around the arena and saw the props, costumes, and staging. It was located outside the arena. I don’t know what they do if it rains!

The Verona Arena was built in the 1st century and was the best conserved Roman amphitheatre.

The arena is beside the Piazza Bra. It was the largest public square in Verona and one of the largest in Europe. It also was busy!

This bronze monument of Vittorio Emanuele II was created by Ambroggio Borghi and erected in 1883. He was the first king of united Italy. It was located in Giardino park beside Piazza Bra.

The Monument of the Fallen for Freedom was a statue by Mario Salazzari and created in 1946. It commemorated the anniversary of the Liberation of Italy on April 25th.

Palazzo Barbieri was the current seat of the Verona City Council. Its construction began in 1836 and was completed in 1848.

It was such a beautiful evening after dinner that we took a walk around the Piazza Bra.

Tomorrow we were going to explore more of Verona!