VERONA 2017: The Roman Theater

As you may recall, we spent 11 days in Italy last year, 7 in Venice and then 4 in Verona.  Our travel agent told us 4 days would be plenty of time to see Verona, but surely by now you can see just how much there was to see.  We covered the bases but...just barely.

Our third day in Verona was packed full of 3 churches and the Roman Theater, plus a flag-throwing show on our way home.  I've already shown you the Santa Maria in Organo church here.  From there we immediately walked to the nearby Roman Theater.

See how close they are:  red dot (church) and blue dot (theater).

Actually, besides the Roman Theater, you also gain entrance to the Archaeological Museum,

both for the price of one...with the entrance right off the main street.

Once through the building to behind, you're confronted with ruins from the 1st century BC.

This is the kind of thing that blows my mind.  BC = Before Christ!

And there it is, the Roman Theater.

In the 1st century BC it would have included satirical dramas by Terence and Plautus.

[Surely I learned about them in Latin class all those eons ago?!]

Can you imagine watching Shakespearean plays there today!

Later, when we took the lift to the Archaeological Museum, we got a better overview.

See how close it sits on the Adige river...

...and how it offers views of the city every bit as captivating as any play/event.

Before taking the lift to the museum, we stopped to see the church of St. Siro and St. Libera.

It was built in the 10th century, restored in the 14th century.

As you can see, it sits at the edge of the theater steps, with the museum to the left behind/above.

To be honest, there wasn't much to see inside but it was worth the look.

You could say this was worth the climb.

After the church we took the lift to the Archaeological Museum above.

It was opened in 1924 in the former convent of Gerolamo, from the 14th century.

More Roman you cannot get!

Because it was originally a convent, there are cloisters (bottom) and a large terrace (top),
with Roman artifacts everywhere.

Again, more Roman you cannot get.

I remember having to learn the names of all the Roman columns in Latin class!

But it was the church of St. Gerolamo in the convent that most captivated me there.

It was a walk-through from the museum to the terrace, but it stopped me dead in my tracks.

See what I mean?

And this was just ONE STOP on a busy day!

Yes, there's more to come....