We are so glad that we stayed an extra night in Verona. If we hadn’t, we would be heading out. We want to visit Castelvecchio Fortress and Museum, ride up the funicular to Castel San Pietro to take in the view of the city at sunset, and ride around the city again to sightsee in the way we do it best...on our bike.
First stop is the Tourist Office to buy a cycling map guidebook (in English) and a small book about the Veneto region. Fabio, a fellow cycling and tandem enthusiast, visited with Barry while I was in the Tourist Info. Fabio has a tandem at home, that he loves to ride.
Verona’s Tourist Office has created a gem of a guidebook featuring Heritage sites of commerce, restaurants and shops like this Pharmacy which has been in operation for generations. It makes for a wonderful way to sightsee as it takes you on a quest to find these special places. The Capri family has run this pharmacy for over 100years.
As well as touring Castelvecchio,the Fortress, the Museum within is also extraordinary to visit, not only for its collection, but for the masterful renovation bry Carlo Scarpa, from 1958 to 1974. He was an untrained architect yet his ideas and work were revolutionary. His achievement here is a masterpiece of design and restoration and his genius is recognized around the world. Today, the standards of renovation are based on his work. He understood how to combine modern with original, and when to expose historical elements without compromising its integrity.
Castelvecchio houses one of the most important collection of statues of the Romanesque period. We enjoyed the way the museum was laid out in this restored fortress (from 1953).
There is an extensive and important collection of art from the 13th and 14th century which helped us to understand those times in the Veronese region. As well, there is a vast collection of Veronese art from later centuries up to the 18th century.
The art is very impressive. In fact, a brazen, well organized theft of 17 paintings was executed in 2015. Six months later the paintings were found in Ukraine by border guards, wrapped in plastic near the border with Moldova. This theft was valued at 16 million Euros and remains the worst in Italian history.
These sculptures are interesting for the evidence of original paint that remains. We were especially taken with the one of the woman on the top of the collage. The view from behind showing the detail of her braided hair is notable.
Castelvecchio has it all -a well developed museum and art gallery, as well as a castle to explore along the ramparts, up and down stairs and around nooks and crannies. All in all, an adventure. In Verona we benefitted from being over 60 as we qualified for a reduced admission cost.
Looking down from the battlements to an extraordinary view of the river and Verona. It is a very hot day and people are trying to cool down by dipping their feet in the Adige.
Connected to the Castle is the bridge across the river. The bridge was bombed during WWII by the Germans when they retreated retreated. During the war, the Castle was the site of the Verona Trials when Mussolini tried enemies of the regime, including his own son-in-law.
This statue of the knight on his horse is well regarded and notable for the smile on his face. The Scaligari family crest with a dog climbing a ladder is represented here on his helmet.
Initially we didn’t appreciate the finer artistic details of this painting, A Child with a Drawing. The artist, Giovanni Corotto was influenced by Leonardo da Vinci, hence the drawing . We did come around and grew to really like this painting... And by the way, so did the art thieves. This painting was stolen in the art heist of 2015 and has come home again. No wonder the boy in the painting looks so happy!
As so often happens travelling, we meet interesting people. This couple live in Switzerland. She is originally from Brazil, he from Italy and her parents are visiting from Brazil. Happy Birthday to mother and daughter!
And then a crazy thing happened - a chance meeting of like minded cyclists. A young man, Lorenzo had set up his touring bike with photos of his travels around the world by bike, and a couple were just beginning a 4 month cycling tour. Madness ensued and we chatted about touring, bikes and the logistics of travelling by bike. Great fun.
What a day for making connections we had. When we rode up to the building to take the funicular, we met these Canadian couples from Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. They had just ridden from the top of Reschen Pass to Trento. Once again, we had a great time visiting with them. You’d never guess that we live quietly at home. Something crazy happens when we travel!
The funicular -what a great way to climb a steep hill....and the views! It is a hot evening and there are many Veronese enjoying the cooler temperatures at the lookout.
We can see so many of the landmarks we have enjoyed riding by or visiting the past few days. This photo captures the reality of the many narrow winding roads of this medieval town.
