Early start as we left Venice, the canals, the glass works, the churches, the shops etc behind for Verona, Milan and Lake Maggiore.

We arrived into Verona and the annual street marathon was being held with a number of streets closed for the event. We left the bus and walked around the ancient roman amphitheatre and up some alleys to Juliet's Balcony, made famous in Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet'. There was a mass of tourists and sightseers in the square. After jostling the crowd we managed to get a quick photo and made a quick retreat to a local cafe. We had some free time to walk around the town before returning to the bus.

Verona is a city straddling the Adige River in Veneto, northern Italy, with approximately 265,000 inhabitants. It is one of the seven chief administrative centres of the region. It is the second largest city municipality in the region and the third largest city of northeast Italy. The metropolitan area of Verona covers an area of 1,426 km2 (550.58 sq mi) and the area has a population of 714,274. It is one of the main tourist destinations in northern Italy, owing to its artistic heritage, several annual fairs, shows, and operas including those at the lyrical season in the Arena, the ancient amphitheatre built by the Romans.

The city has been awarded World Heritage Site status by UNESCO because of its urban structure and architecture. Three of Shakespeare's plays were set in Verona: Romeo and Juliet, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, and The Taming of the Shrew.

On the road again we travelled to Milan - the financial and fashion capital of Italy. We had a guided walking tour to sights including Leonardo da Vinci's Statue, the Galleria and the Duomo Cathedral of Milan.

In 1872 a monument was erected at the Square in honor of Leonardo da Vinci, considered one of the most multi-talented people to have ever walked on this planet. The monument, sculpted by Pietro Magni, shows a statue of Leonardo da Vinci on a pedestal. At the foot of the pedestal stand his four favourite students. Reliefs depict some of the disciplines that da Vinci mastered: painting, sculpting, engineering and architecture.

The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II is one of the world's oldest shopping malls. Housed within a four-storey double arcade in central Milan, the Galleria is named after Vittorio Emanuele II, the first king of the Kingdom of Italy. It was designed in 1861 and built by Giuseppe Mengoni between 1865 and 1877. It is an amazing structure with lots of high- end shops.

The structure consists of two glass-vaulted arcades intersecting in an octagon covering the street connecting Piazza del Duomo to Piazza della Scala. The street is covered by an arching glass and cast iron roof, a popular design for 19th-century arcades.

After time in the Galleria we went across the square to the The Duomo Cathedral of Milan. We entered through the huge double front double doors and were amazed by the sheer size of the Cathedral, it's huge columns and the variety of magnificent sculptures and other artworks.

Milan Cathedral is the cathedral church of Milan. Dedicated to Santa Maria Nascente (Saint Mary Nascent), it is the seat of the Archbishop of Milan, currently Cardinal Angelo Scola. The Gothic cathedral took nearly six centuries to complete. It is the fifth largest cathedral in the world and the largest in the Italian state territory. It is the worlds third largest Catholic Cathedral. We were fortunate to be present for Benediction.

We left Milan bound for the very stunning Lake Maggiore at the foot of the Italian alps - where we will spend the next 2 nights.

Today's insights:

- Rome is the political capital of Italy and Milan is the fashion and finance capital of Italy.
- Milan is the only city in Italy with skyscrapers.
- Although Maria Calais was born in New York, as a young woman she moved to Verona and Milan and became a star.
- Lake Maggiore extends into Switzerland where it becomes Lake Lugano.