Most people know Verona from all those love-themed movies like “Letters from Juliet,” “Romeo and Juliet,” and “Love in the Villa.” We are here for two nights and we know there is a lot to see. Our Toyota car satnav is taking us in circles trying to find our apartment. Roads change into pedestrian streets, but only at certain times in Verona. We call our contact, Angelo. He says we are on the correct route if we find the Church of Santa Teresa degli Scalzi, said to be Dante’s favourite. It is used more as a museum of fine art.

Going through the tight street, each side of two overlarge cement flower troughs I scrape the car to avoid some lethargic pedestrians.

Our apartment block has four floors next to and above a bakery and wine shop. Angelo explains it has been in the family for at least four generations. The property, he tells us, likely dates from 1668. The property happens to be in one of the best and oldest squares in the city, Piazza Delle Erbe. 300 yards away is Juliet’s (as in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet) house dating from a similar period. We remark, “That is a real prime location.” He cracks the joke, “I’ve made a lot of dough.”

I unload the five pieces of luggage and assorted backpacks and take them up the three flights of old stairs. Jezzabel, the wife, doesn’t travel light. Our room is a balance of historic-looking frescos on the wall with modern funky furniture. There is a narrow balcony in both rooms.

As per The Whinging Pome Random Rule No. 322, Always check out the view and security in a new stop over “

The restaurants are all full, a small market in the large square makes me ponder the history this area has seen over its lifetime.

In the evening we don’t need to stray too far to find a good restaurant. Twenty yards from our hotel in the square is a building called Palazzo Maffei. The front is partly covered in a hoarding, but the rather high-flown picturesque structure, also likely 600-plus years old, has six statues of the pagan gods facing the square (Hercules, Jupiter, Venus, Mercury, Apollo, and Minerva). The restaurant sits on the ground floor in a part open sky surrounded on three sides by windows. We have a great meal.

Breakfast in the same square and our first taste of arrogant service, which sadly we witness and endure in the remaining meals out in the city of Verona. Mazzanti caters to tourists who want to be ripped off and get bad service. The aloof and lanky waiter remarks, “No croissants, no tables of five, no separate bills, no fresh orange, set meals only, etc.”

In these situations, The Whinging Pome Random Rule No. 155 applies: “If the service starts off badly, it’s unlikely going to get better.”

We get rolls that look like the cheapest you find in Sri Lanka. We jokingly say it’s from “Perera and Sons.” The next day we tried a different restaurant for breakfast. Sadly, it’s the same disappointment and bad service.

We go to the home of Juliet, some 300 meters away. It’s congested with people, loads of young ladies wanting their photo taken by the walls of endless love messages left among chewing gum stuck by tourists. It’s a place of pilgrimage. Everyone is looking up at the famous balcony which Romeo climbed to woo Juliet. There is a museum with Juliet’s bed and more, but I’ve had enough of the pushing and shoving by the masses. The story of the couple dates back to the 14th century, though the house is from 1200 AD. Shakespeare wrote his play about the couple in 1597. From then on, various painters, composers, and others have glorified the sad story of the two lovers and how their death makes the world aware of the young couple from Verona.

I know it’s time to break away from my group as it’s going to be shopping for the rest of the day, especially Jezzabel. So I head off for a walk in the beautiful city. My simple approach to seeing the city is to do a circular route with the next stop being the 3rd-century Arena, an amphitheatre smaller but truly second to the Colosseum in Rome. The Arena was built in the 3rd century and had a capacity then of 30,000 people. Though today, they limit audiences to 15,000,  people due to security requirements. 

I find the 1187-year-old Cathedral with its unique facade and the Bishop’s Palace near Riva Battello northeast of the town, then work into the back streets.

The Whinging Pome Random Rule No. 146: “Take some of the back roads when walking around a new town.” Verona is no exception. It starts to rain so back to meet the love of my life, Jezzabel, my Juliet.