Day 5 - Flexible day & a some culture
"Flexible Day" Idea
When I planned the trip I was afraid that it will be too
fast paced. The solution was a "Flexible Day" that we will decide it's
content when the time comes. I prepared few places we can visit or just
revisit places we didn't utilize to the fullest. The options were:
1. Revisiting Verona or Venice.
2. Visit the cities Padova & Vicezna .
3. Go to the "Water Park" and "movies park" in CanevaLand.
Moving to Verona
Early morning we packed our bags and hurried to a new hotel in Verona called Maxim which was in the modern part of Verona (Verona's second train station). Finding the hotel proved a little difficult but we found it nevertheless. The reason for the sudden hotel movement is the Opera show that is planned for the evening. The Opera will end late in the night and since night transport is either scarce or pricy I preferred moving to a new hotel for a day.
Half a day in Venice
Thinking back the "Flexible Day" proved his worth. The
decision was quite easy - Dafna and myself both felt that we didn't taste
enough of Venice. So we took again the train to Venice to taste a little
more.
Rialto Bridge - an impressive bridge, accompanied with an interesting
market.
"Basilica di Santa Maria della" is a very impressive
in her a size & massiveness.
The art Academy holds a large collection of Venician art. As far as I
can remember Dafna didn't enjoy it all too much but many other speak
well of
it.
Aside from the main attractions we just strolled about the city. Just
wondering throughout the city is a very fun experience.
Basilica di Santa Maria della
Opera in Verona
Neither me nor Dafna fonder Opera, yet Italy is one of the
Opera capitals and Verona's amphitheatre is considered one of the most
prestigious places for opera in Italy. We figured missing it might be a
waste and if we won't like it at least we'll know were not Opera people.
I booked the tickets to "Carmen" show in the internet at least a month
before the trip and all there was left was to pick them up. If you won't
book tickets in advance I wish you all the best getting them - It's
completely possible but hard and crowded. The cheap tickets (35 euro) define
a area where you can sit. Since some sits are better than other we stood in
front of the amphitheatre gates about an hour before they even opened.
Verona's amphitheatre and it's set.
The sittings were cold stone and it was very crowded. When
I found some wisdom and gave up on my miserliness I rented a pillow for 5
euro, and ,boy, it made the difference.
If you use the "coming early" system ( as I did) I suggest you buy food
beforehand because there is about two hours waiting till the opera starts.
The amphitheatre itself is impressive and the amount of people filling it is
impressive just as much. With dusk, the amphitheatre's tradition starts. Each
person light a candle you get in the entrance - The sigh is amazing.
Thousands of lit candles are definitely a beautiful sight.
Thousands of lit candles - even more pretty when darkness falls
Afterwards the opera starts - Beautiful set, amazing voice
that can be heard clearly from our far sits even without speakers.
But ultimately we didn't prove to be opera people. It was an interesting
experience but after a long day walk, near complete darkness, and lack of
interest it was hard to keep awake.
Night in Verona
The opera ended approximately at midnight. Opera's night
proved to be very lively in Piazza della Arba. If it's to your liking I bet
that there are tons of night life places to go to. But we were exhausted and
took a cab to the hotel.
The hotel (Maxim) received us in a kindly manner. The hotel's atmosphere was
very different from the hotel City in the Descanzano. In Verona we reached a
very large room, with huge bed. To sum it all there was a feeling of
abundance but we liked the homey atmosphere of Hotel City better - But it's
really a matter of taste.
Day Summary
Half a day in Venice - this half day was an absolute
necessity even if it wasn't as amazing as the first day.
Venice Summary - an amazing city simply a must. In my opinion it is possible
to enjoy Venice even 5 days straight but a day & a half give you a good
taste of what really interesting in the city. If you are lucky enough to be
in Venice while the festival of masks happens I bet you will find Venice
even more charming.
Opera - I don't regret going to the opera. The cultural experience was
interesting and at least now I know what is a quality opera. For a fonder of
opera it's a must. If you are not a fonder of opera it probably won't change
much.