Mantova 🇮🇹 to Verona 🇮🇹


Marvelous Monday! After a great sleep and a hotel breakfast that included apple strudel and the local speciality cake (😂), I said a reluctant goodbye to the town of Mantua and walked to the train station for my next destination. A short 45 min train ride and I was in Verona.
I dropped my bag at my hotel and then met up with the guide for a free walking tour of Verona.
The meet point was the old city gate, built in Roman times but dismantled by Napoleon but thoughtfully all the blocks were numbered and it was able to be relocated and rebuilt in the 1920’s.
We wandered through the mediaeval cobbled streets lined with Palaces. Lots of history explained.
We stopped at bakeries to marvel at the local delicacies. 
We stopped to see the famous balcony from Romeo and Juliette and interestingly Shakespeare had never visited Italy!
The tour finished at the Arena, the 3rd largest in Italy but the largest in regular use. It will be used for the closing ceremony of the Winter Olympics in a week.
After the tour, a fellow tourist from Germany and I spent a few hours sightseeing. We climbed the many steps up to Castel san Pietro. Great views taking in the river and historic Old town of Verona. Bonus olympic rings at the lookout.
Back down the steps and across the bridge and then to Palazzo Maffei which now houses an incredible Art Collection. This would be the most magnificent display of an art collection I have seen. Groupings of vastly different pieces that just seemed to work. Picasso Pottery amongst the variety of works.
The huge spiral staircase in the Palace took me to the various floors and the to the roof for wonderful views of the square and rooftops. 
Back to check in at my hotel, via the castle and a rest watching the Olympics before dinner.
Tonight I met Sinja the German girl for dinner near the Arena. I tried the local dish Amarone Risotto - red wine risotto.
24,000+ steps today of pure joy and delight exploring this wonderful city.

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