30th January 2015: Verona, Italy

Two households, both alike in dignity
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny 
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean
From forth the fatal loins of these two foes 
A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life.
- Romeo & Juliet

Throwback to summer school days at King's! Absolutely no regrets taking up a Shakespeare module when I was there. Romeo & Juliet may be fictional, but Verona (where the play is set) is real! And if you're familiar with Shakespeare's work, you'll know that Taming of the Shrew is set in Verona as well.

If you're making your way to Venice from Milan, Verona is somewhere between the two. And if you have some hours to spare, it's a good place to stop by. Of course, there's more to see other than Juliet's balcony.

After arriving at Verona Porta Nouva station, it's a good 15minutes walk before you get to the city center/old town.

The day started off really gloomy. But as soon as we walk through the city gate, the sky cleared up significantly!

If you're intending to stay for at least a day, it'll be good to get the "Verona Card" from the Tourist information. This card allows you to enter all the attractions in Verona once, and it includes free bus rides! It cost 18euros for 24hours, starting from the very first bus ride you take, or from the first attraction you visit. Given that the entrance to the Roman Arena is already 10euros, you just have to visit one more attraction to break even.

The Arena will probably be the first thing that catches your eye as you walk through the gates of the old town. And yes, it does resembles the Colosseum in Rome. If you're here at the right time of the year, you can probably catch a opera there.

After visiting the Arena, make your way to the old town square (Piazza delle Erbe). Lots of restaurants, bars and cafes can be found in the area.

Go up Torre dei Lamberti if you'll like a nice panorama view of Verona. On good days, you can even see the alps!

The famous Juliet's balcony is just round the corner from Torre dei Lamberti. Entering the courtyard area is free, but if you'll like a photo of yourself on Juliet's balcony, you'll have to pay 6euros to enter the house. Free if you're holding the Verona Card. The exhibition in the house is not too bad if you're a huge fan of Romeo & Juliet, lots of paintings of the famous balcony scenes, and some original scripts for the play.

Oh, and it is rumoured that by touching the right breast of Juliet's statue, you will get good luck finding your true love! I guess that explains why that particular part is so "shiny".

I honestly have no idea how this house came about since the story is supposedly fictional.

There are several churches along the way which we visited. I mean, why not since entrance is free with the Verona card! But that also means forgetting the names of the ones we visited. I'm pretty sure Duomo di Verona is one of them.. Oops.

It's also pretty nice to walk along the river banks, especially nearing sunset.

And if there's only time for you to visit one other attraction other than the arena, you have to see Castelvecchio. It is technically a museum but I'm really not a museum person. What I really like about this place is the view you get from the bridge. And if you visit during sunset, you're in for a real treat.

So.. yes, there's really quite a lot to see here. Even I didn't actually think this post will get that long. And that probably goes to show how underrated Verona is, right?

28th July 2015: Brighton, England

Procrastination should be my middle name. And I don't think I will ever finish "recording" all my travels at this rate. 3 months since the last post!!

Moving on to a trip to Brighton, UK.. Not too far from London, only an hour train journey if you take the train from Victoria. A seaside city that somewhat resembles Santa Monica(California) to me.

Couldn't have asked for a better day to be here. Half the time I'm in UK, it's cold and gloomy. Even when it's suppose to be summer. It was actually pretty cloudy when we got here, but thankfully the sun came out to play!

Brighton is a pebble stone beach so if you're expecting a nice golden sandy beach.. Nadah! Even though the sun came out, the weather was still a little too cold for suntanning. And it was extremely windy. Lost count of the number of times I nearly got blown away, literally. 

When you're at the beach, eat fish&chips. And guard your food well before an unsuspecting seagull swoop your food away. 

There's a fishing museum along the beach and there's several fishing boats outside to take pictures with. I'm quite happy with how the photos turned out. The power of natural lighting.

I actually think the highlight of this place for most people is the arcade. There's this machine, something like coin dozer that everyone is glued to. Half the arcade is filled with this machine. There are some family-friendly amusement rides on the pier too.

There were also several interesting streets and I wish we came earlier to check out the cafes and vintage shops. 

Another interesting structure which I know nothing about: The Pavilion 

I only had about half a day at Brighton but I thought it was pretty sufficient to see most of the city. The trains frequency from London were pretty high too. But if you have more time, consider taking a bus/train to Seven Sisters!