She Said:

We were considering skipping Verona to spend a few more days in Florence, however, the thought of seeing an opera in a Roman arena excited us so much that we decided to follow our original plan to go to the Verona Opera Festival . Another reason we were thinking of foregoing Verona was because Chad has been inflicted with an earwax crisis. He is totally impacted in one ear (from swimming we think) and subsequently cannot hear out of his left ear. So obviously he was not as excited for the Opera as he was before and as I still was.

We arrived in Verona via two regional trains and consulted with the tourist information booth before taking the bus to town. He basically laughed when we told him we didn't have a reservation for a place to stay, it was the Opera festival, "hadn't we planned ahead?" Nope, haven't done that at all so far, and have been pretty lucky finding places. Hopefully our luck was not about to run out! He called a few places for us and found a place with a double room, about 15-20 minutes from the city center. The price was high, and since we weren't totally convinced the town would be booked (especially the one star hotels we had listed), we took a risk and hopped on the bus to the city center instead . We ended up finding a place, five minutes from the Arena, within our price range. It wasn't the Marriot or anything, but it would suffice.

The opera that night was Madame Butterfly. We fully planned on seeing this opera and then leaving the next day. However, many people, including locals and our hotel owner, advised us to wait for the following evening to see Aida, as this was THE opera of Verona. Also, upon entering the city center, we saw all the props for Aida arranged outside of the Arena. So we listened, and followed what seemed like signs, and went straight to the box office to get our seats. We strategically picked seats with the stage to the right in case Chad's hearing did not return, and began talk of finding a doctor. We decided to wait another day and began our walking tour of Verona.

We began in Piazza Erbe, once a Roman forum, now a battleground between store owners and open market vendors for piazza space . There is a fountain in the middle of the square, which has been bubbling for 2,000 years, and what is referred to as "Verona's Madonna" in the middle carrying a sign reading, "I want justice, and I bring peace." As our walk continued, we were instructed to look up at an arch from which a whale's rib was suspended. It has been hanging there for about 1,000 years, and legend says that it will only fall when someone who has never lied walks under it. We both proceeded cautiously, but no such luck! The rest of the walk took us through tombs of the Scala family (still not so sure who they were), over the Ponte Pietra with its original white stones, and to the Teatro Romano dating back to the first century (currently staging Shakespeare jazz). We sat atop Castello San Pietro and enjoyed the Verona skyline.

The street we were staying on can easily be compared to Fifth Avenue in NYC. Many of you would be thrilled at the Armani, Diesel, Furla, and many other name brand stores that I don't have a prayer at knowing. However, this is clearly not our thing (precisely why we skipped Milan) and the crowd that ensued during shopping hours was unbelievable. Our window opened up to this street and I can honestly say that I have never heard so many screaming kids in one place in my life. My theory is that parents were too busy shopping and kids were bored. My advice, (which I almost yelled out the window), leave them at home if you plan to shop! Unfortunately, because of his ear problem, Chad was not as happy being out touring all day . So, he stayed in the room and relaxed while I went to the park to people watch and take a gander at the tourist-infested Juliet's balcony during the day.

The next morning we decided to go to the doctor. Chad had not gotten any relief or resolution to his hearing loss. The TI sent us to a local doctor, and through a mix of English, Italian, and French, she basically told us that the pharmacist in Florence had given us the wrong drops (not harmful, but not going to help the problem). She prescribed new drops and said if it didn't clear in 2-3 days to go to the hospital to have it removed. She said we could start the treatment immediately and hope for some partial hearing to return by the night (for the opera). So, Chad spent most of the day in the room waiting for this to occur, and although I stayed with him to help/empathize for most of it, I took a break and ended up finding the only cheap store on the block (I would compare it to Daffy's or Strawberry in NYC, or TJ Max in the suburbs) to buy myself a new cheap shirt for the opera.

When it was time to go to the opera, it began to rain. We had planned to get our food and wine and eat it in the arena. However, the weather required that we change plans, so we found a self service place for a quick dinner instead. We got our wine in a plastic bottle (almost every liquor store in Verona plans for the opera and empties water bottles for opera goers to take wine to the Arena), and by the time we entered, the rain had stopped .

On the 100th birthday of Giuseppe Verde, Aida was performed in the Roman arena with no electricity. To be able to read the programs and see the scenery, the public brought with them thousands of candles. The tradition quickly caught on, however, had begun to dwindle until a wealthy operagoer named Vincenzi decided to offer a candle to every operagoer to continue the tradition. So, when it was time for the show to begin, we lit our candle to signify our presence at this unique event, and were in awe at how the arena lit up. The capacity is around 15,000, and aside from a handful of orchestra seats, the place was full. I couldn't believe we were sitting in a Roman arena in Verona, drinking the wine of the region (Valpolicella), about to see an opera. I do not take for granted how lucky we are to be on this trip, but it's definitely moments like that when I am truly reminded of just how lucky we are.

The show began and we noticed that the performers depended solely on the strength of their voices and the acoustics to be heard . The opera was beautifully done and the performers were passionate. We listened and enjoyed Aida for 3 hours and talked of the highlights all the way home.




He Said:

No other city in the entire world has more screaming kids per square kilometer than Verona, yet somehow, despite the fact I had an Odyssean-portion of earwax lodged in my cochlea or something, I was still able to hear their songs of despair for more gelato, cries for time out of the stroller, and blood-curdling shrieks at the site of some of the street performers lined along Via Mazzini, the main shopping street between Piazza Bra and Piazza Erbe that was just below our hotel window.

Unfortunately, because walking through the streets completely deaf in one ear made me a bit ill in the head, I spent a lot of time in the room doing some writing on the computer and reading up in the guidebooks . It was actually a nice break, though, and for the first time in a long, long time, I sort of felt like I had a day when I did nothing. Of course "nothing" is relative, and we wound up seeing Verdi's Aidi in the Roman amphitheater that night.

Luckily, after scratching long enough with my finger and drinking enough beer to internalize my carbonated belches thus equalizing the pressure in my ear, I was able to retrieve enough of my hearing to enjoy the opera despite the fact that there was absolutely no sound amplification aside from the fat lady's diaphragm and the arrangement of stones in a 2,000-year-old Roman structure. The set, while simple, was on a grand scale and completely incorporated part of the seating. I'll never forget the image of the actors silhouetted against the night sky as they lined the top row of the arena. They then lit torches as part of the death ceremony when Aida and her lover were buried alive, and despite the fact it was an Egyptian story, seeing it in that setting was ritualistically as close to ancient Rome as I will probably ever be. I know Alli and I are both thankful for the advice of our hotel owner, the guidebooks, James G., and all the other "signs" we saw along the way that told us to stay two nights and see Aida.

One of the other great claims-to-fame that Verona has is Romeo and Juliet. Though there is no evidence either way in terms of authenticity, one specific balcony near Piazza Erbe is said to be that of Juliet . The women were lining up to pay for a balcony view, while the men were taking their photographs from below. Then the men would line up to rub Juliet's bronze breast while the women took the photographs. Alli and I of course did neither, and the most haunting view of the whole area was after dark, when they locked the gates, and the illuminated statue glowed green amongst the shrubbery underneath the darkened balcony. Regardless of whether or not it was really her house, Shakespeare based the play on two, real, feuding families from Verona.

On the morning of our departure, my hearing once again failed me. But as the doctor said I would, I did get at least some of it back for the opera. She prescribed for me the right medicine, and hopefully it will work after the treatment runs it course. Otherwise she said I will probably need to visit a hospital to have my ear flushed. Just what I need - more water - since that's what caused this in the first place. Anyhow, I read in the guidebook that all public Italian hospitals offer free care to patients in need, so it shouldn't be a problem. As of now, though, my visit to the Italian doctor, as an American, cost me the exact same price that a copay would have cost me at home using my former HMO insurance plan under Cigna. Something to think about...