As it’s tradition, every year we head to South Tyrol for the Bronners gathering, but this time we did something different—a pit stop in Verona.

The home of Romeo and Juliet. 🥀

This is not your typical “What to do in Verona in one day” guide but rather a peek at how we passed the time strolling around this ancient city, which to my amazement has a smaller population than Valladolid.

I’m not new to Northern Italy. I spent some time in Venice and Padua while on a student exchange, so I already got a taste of layers and layers of history unpacked while walking. What surprised me the most about Verona is how close things are.

You can literally walk the entire old town in one morning.

While most people rush to Juliet’s balcony or the Arena, one of the things that really struck me was how much beauty lives in the small details. The faded frescoes that still cling to medieval facades, the wrought-iron balconies covered in greenery, the variety of archways, etc.

And we also climbed the Castel San Pietro.

The view is wonderful: terracotta rooftops spilling down towards the Adige and church towers everywhere and ringing—all of them, at once. It was chaotic and beautiful, like the whole city was suddenly alive. It’s the kind of place where you just want to sit for a while and let time slow down.

Verona is really compact and easy to navigate, which makes it a great small getaway for any connection trip. Worth the visit.