I did a quick weekend trip over to Verona, Italy, where my parents are staying for a few months. This travel thing kinda runs in the family. ;) Full slideshow here.

Verona, Italy

Verona

Verona is a cute town, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, nestled in the sharp bend of the Adige river. It is most famous for being home to both Dante and the rivaling Montecchi and Capuleti families in the 1300s. The former mentions the latter in one of his Comedies, a few other authors got in and told the tale here and there, until finally some guy named Shakespeare picked it up.

The Capuleti house still stands, and Juliet’s balcony (I guess it must have been it – there was just the one) is a popular tourist attraction. The town is crazy for Juliet! They have erected a statue, and apparently it brings good fortune to touch Juliet’s right breast. The boob shines brilliantly compared to the rest of her. I, of course, obliged and got the classic Verona tourist shot.

Juliet's Balcony

Me and, err, Juliet's right boob

Getting to Verona was an adventure in itself. I took Ryanair which leaves from Beauvais airport in “Paris” (uh, not Paris, it’s quite a ways out). There is a shuttle that takes you from the west side of Paris (Porte Maillot) to the airport. It takes about an hour and costs €14 each way. Keep this in mind when you buy your cheap Ryanair flights… There is usually some kind of shuttle involved, no matter which city you are in.

The other potential added cost is your baggage. Ryanair is extremely strict about carry-on bag size. Their requirements are smaller than the average airline, and they force each and every passenger to put their bag in the box at security. Beware, I saw more than one passenger who hadn’t read the fine print get stung with a  €35 baggage fee. Luckily, I packed really light. :)

That combined with €28 round-trip shuttle fees on one side, and then shuttle fees on the other side, can easily start to add up to the prices you saw on the other airlines when you were booking your flight. If you play by the rules and have plenty of travel-time, though, it can be a great way to go.

All in all, it was lovely to spend a weekend with my parents and see their eyes all aglow from their experience living there.