Travel Journal- Oh, Italy

Sirmione, Milan, Verona, & Florence, Italy

September 2nd-5th, 2019

It truly warms my heart to write about Italy. We had so many wonderful experiences here and every time I think back on it, I can’t help but smile. Although we traveled through at a very busy time of year, the warm weather and liveliness really added to our adventure.

Sirmione captured our hearts instantly. This town sits at the tip of a peninsula, nestled on the banks of Lake Garda. The lake view made for a great camping spot and the castle placed on the very edge of the peninsula was one of the coolest castles we have seen so far. We walked along the shore in the evening and had ice cream at one of the many Gelaterias. Sooooo good!

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We traded the quiet, small town for the big city when we reached Milan. We didn’t have much time to spend, but we were still able to tour the Duomo di Milano which is a grand cathedral in the center of the city. This cathedral is one of the largest in the world!

In front of the massive structure is a wide open plaza with a large statue in the middle. However, it is almost impossible to see what the statue is because it is covered in pigeons! Not only did these birds take over the statue, but they completely covered the plaza; so much so, you could hardly see the ground and you had to watch your step! People were holding out bread crumbs so the birds would land on their arms and kids would run through them sending them scattering. It was madness! 

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After marching through the pigeons and getting a “free” bracelet from a street vender, we then walked through Via Montenapoleone which is part of the Quadrilatero della Moda (Fashion Square). This fancy street is famous in Milan for housing some of the most expensive stores such as Louis Vitton, Prada, Versace, Gucci, etc. We were too scared to go in any of the shops haha but the street was stunning.

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We veered off our originally planned route in order to hop over to Verona. We debated whether to go or not because it is kind of out of the way. But looking back on it, we are so glad we did! It is a really interesting city and there were old landmarks at every turn. Everything was so busy and exciting, that we eventually got a bit lost! We were looking for Juliet’s house when an Italian man approached us speaking German. He was quite old and it was hard to understand him, but he gave us directions and said he loves speaking in German because he doesn’t want to lose it! We thanked him and headed to the famous spot where so many people come in hopes of finding love.

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As you enter the garden where Juliet’s balcony sits, you pass through the wall of love where people from all over the world mark the walls. People usually write their names together with a heart, or place a piece of gum on the wall; some even write their love stories or search for lost love. So romantic to think about!

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Ben and I made our mark on the wall and then visited Juliet. Legend has it that of you touch Juliet’s right breast (her statue haha), you will be lucky in love. Although I have already found love (And have been very lucky!) I still did it haha. It was a super cool atmosphere and we could definitely see why Verona is called “The City of Love”.  We also visited Romeo’s house and walked along the river for a bit. Our time here was well worth the small detour. 

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It was quite a long drive from Verona to Florence, so we stopped to sleep in small towns along the way. We have been finding beautiful places to park where we can do laundry, exercise, and work on journals and pictures.

Sometimes it’s nice to take things slow! One of our parking spots was right outside of Florence, so we decided to take the train into the city center. It was my first time navigating the railway and it was a little difficult in Italian! But we made it with no problems and got to see the Santa Maria del Fiora.

This is another huge cathedral with a super unique look. The plaza was full of vendors, so we shopped and listened to the street performers. It was super cool and a great way to spend the day! Next up, Rome!

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