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Post by pointofnoreturn on Dec 21, 2006 23:21:27 GMT -5
One of my friends went there and she said it was okay. I mean, if you're a die-hard tourist, it's something that you could use in a daytrip from a city such as Florence. The fact that there are LONG waiting lines and the steep admission (15 euros) makes me leery of going there. To each's own I guess.
Try to not hit every single landmark in the guide. Go to those that appeal to you and it's more rewarding than just going to a tourist hotspot just for the hell of it and not getting anything in return.
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Post by me on Dec 21, 2006 23:31:57 GMT -5
fyi: gelato is the yummy Italian ice cream. and, i'm pretty sure, gelati is plural for gelato. 3. If you're in the region, it's worth a half-day trek to Pisa for some gelato (or gelati!) Really?!? i had no idea Shakespeare had ever left England! and, i thought the whole story came from his mind. oh, well, live & learn. personally, i never paid that much attention to Romeo and Juliet. my favorite work of Shakespeare is As You Like It. one of his *other* plays. it's best known for his great soliloquy of melancholy Jaques, the Seven Ages of Man, it starts "All the world's a stage - And all the men and women merely players." 4. As David pointed out, Romeo and Juliet stories abound in Verona, but don't go there just for that. The only "real" remnant of this tale is Juliet's balcony inside the courtyard (and through the tunnel of love) at Villa Capelletti. Although, and this will break your heart, the balcony was put there (many years ago) by the Verona tourism council to satisfy the many tourists who come looking for the tragic lovers. Romeo's house is down the road a bit and hasn't been restored, in fact there's a cafe where the entrance used to be! The play is based on a combination of stories Shakespeare heard whilst travelling and on the history of the Guelphs and the Ghibelilnes in Italy. Verona is a pretty town and has a relaxed but stylish feel to it. Places like Piazza Bra (main square with cafes, people and gardens), the Arena (Amphitheatre from Roman times) where concerts and operas are still held, Via Mazzini (shops galore!) and Piazza delle Erbe (markets) all warrant a visit if it's on your route. I like Verona, but it only needs a day to explore. |
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Post by pointofnoreturn on Dec 21, 2006 23:48:14 GMT -5
I was always partial to Hamlet and Anthony & Cleopatra.
R&J never really struck a chord with me despite the whole dramatic flair of the play.
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Post by madamtrashheap on Dec 22, 2006 0:52:40 GMT -5
Gelati is the plural for gelato - in my mind it should always be gelati! ;D
As far as I'm aware too, Shakespeare never travelled out of England. By travels I meant on journeys between London and Stratford, sorry for the mix up, was applying old English terminology! The Romeo & Juliet story was based on what he'd heard, read (see Arthur Brooke) and his imagination. I'm a fan of King Lear and The Tempest, but for some reason R&J appeals to the mass romantics - bah humbug!
Back to Pisa - if you're there tom, and are curious, then go. But don't feel like you have to climb it - PONR's note on the cost is correct. Even the Vatican Musuems cost less!
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Post by herrbert on Dec 22, 2006 7:23:20 GMT -5
Seems like normal prices to me, but consider that you have to add taxes to this.
Also note that RyanAir is flying from Beauvais Airport, that is 50 miles north of Paris. (or 1.20 hrs by train to Gare du Nord)
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Post by me on Dec 22, 2006 22:53:38 GMT -5
i thought the French prided themselves on speedy trains? over an hour to go just 80K seems rather pokey. are there lots of stops on the way? - d Also note that RyanAir is flying from Beauvais Airport, that is 50 miles north of Paris. (or 1.20 hrs by train to Gare du Nord) |
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Post by herrbert on Dec 23, 2006 5:28:35 GMT -5
The regional train makes a lot of stops (6 or 7), and also a stopover in Creil, but there is also a bus shuttle to Porte Maillot, for 13 euro's (one way) that takes 1.15 hrs (but also has waiting time of 20 minutes).
So maybe if there is a catch to RyanAir (like tom asked before), it's that they are using airports that can be far from the city where you want to go. With bigger cities (Paris/London) it is always good to check, where the plane is landing, and how longthe transfer takes, and how much it costs.
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Post by me on Dec 23, 2006 18:08:55 GMT -5
not just bigger cities. Ryanair's Vienna airport is in Bratislava, Florence airport is in Pisa & Barcelona airport is in Girona. also, they've got two Stockholm airports, neither of which is at Stockholm. So maybe if there is a catch to RyanAir (like tom asked before), it's that they are using airports that can be far from the city where you want to go. With bigger cities (Paris/London) it is always good to check, where the plane is landing, and how longthe transfer takes, and how much it costs. |
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Post by herrbert on Dec 23, 2006 19:01:13 GMT -5
You are right, David ... where I wrote big cities, should be cities with more airports in the area.
That's why I didn't fly RyanAir when I visited Stockholm this summer. It's about two hours to get to the city from the Airport they are servicing. So I ended up using SAS (with some good prices) flying to/from Arlanda, which connected to Stockholm CS, with a TGV-like train in 20-25 minutes.
The airport that RyanAir calls Düsseldorf, is in fact in Weeze (and old airbase of the British RAF), but it's miles away from Düsseldorf, and the International Airport. (good to know, when you want to catch a connecting flight, and you are thinking it's close to Düsseldorf)
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Post by madamtrashheap on Dec 28, 2006 21:34:07 GMT -5
i thought the French prided themselves on speedy trains? over an hour to go just 80K seems rather pokey. , are you French-bashing again?!!  As for Ryanair airports of choice, another one is Frankfurt (Hahn) which is not in Frankfurt but miles out (almost 2 hours from the centre of Frankfurt), more like Mainz or Trier (good for Black Forest treks). Other airports to be aware of in terms of being a fair way from the city they are named after are Hamburg (Luebeck) and Milan (there are three airports around Milan - Malpensa, Bergamo (Orio al Serio) and Linate International) It's a good idea to check their website and flight map before you get too excited about flying cheap to a city. I've written this a couple of times: sometimes the cost (time and money) of transport to/from these airports ends up costing the same as a ticket with another less budget-friendly airport. As Herrbert pointed out, it's worth weighing up all the aspects. Although, a Euro0.99 flight is a pretty good bargain in anyone's language! |
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