So for our last stop in Italy we decided to head for Verona. Ultra romantic city and we hoped to go to the Opera! The couple we'd met in Romania had told us about the city campsite being really nice so we planned to stay there and enjoy all the city had to offer. Unfortunately, when we got to the campsite we found there was no way our van was going to fit in - they'd had a tent - and the site couldn't take anything bigger than a VW camper so that scuppered the plans somewhat. But undaunted we headed west 30km to Lake Garda where there are loads of campsites and no problems for big vans like ours.

While we hadn't planned to go there - and there was some animation, (OhNoooo!!!) - it was very beautiful and the village/resort we were staying at was very pretty. And the real bonus was that evening there was an incredible fireworks display from a boat on the lake which went on for about 15 minutes. No idea what it was in aid of but it was fantastic!

The next day G got all organised and bought tickets for the Opera in Verona - La Traviata which was the show that night. They do several different ones over the season - and found a hotel for us to stay in - hey if your going to splash out do it in style! We went in on the scooter with Sat Nav in hand which is always entertaining, me having to yell the instructions to G as we're scooting along the ring road, and after settling in the hotel made our way into the city. Its quite small and absolutely beautiful. The Opera doesn't start till 9pm - so its dark we think - so we went for a couple of drinks and some dinner first. While sat with our Prosecco we overheard some people at the next table discussing the opera season - one of them worked at the Arena. Another of them asked which one had had the worst reviews and she said La Traviata, apparently the critics thought it was awful, vulgar and too modern. Having just picked up the tickets that really filled us with enthusiasm so we got some more prosecco and tried to ignore them!

To cheer us up we managed to find a lovely osteria for dinner - we never did work out what the difference is between an osteria, trattoria and restaurant but never mind - and had the best meal of the trip! Aubergine ravioli - delicious! Anyway, then we went to the arena. It was quite something to be in a stadium like that. We were fairly high in the terraces and you could imagine it filled with 20000 people to watch the Gladiators and Christians in Roman times. The opera itself was great we thought - some unusual staging decisions so I can understand some of what the critics said but it was such an event we loved it. And the German woman behind us even stopped humming along after I shooshed her- I don't have to shoosh twice very often! After it finished at midnight we found a Gelateria and got me a huge ice cream so all in all a perfect evening - lots of brownie points for G!!

The next day we spent the morning wandering Verona and confirmed its our favourite city of the trip. Then we went back to the van for a last night on Lake Garda. Off to Slovenia next for more lakes and mountains.

One final word on Italy: It is definitely a place of contrasts both in terrain and behaviour. We did enjoy it generally but it could be bloody hard work. Our recommendation in a Holiday Programme styliee would be if you want beaches go to Greece, at least in high season. Inland Italy is all you expect and you can't beat it for fantastic food and wine, glorious countryside, art and culture. One other interesting point I noted though in my informal survey of sanitary facilities across Europe is that the worst toilets are in Italy! Real surprise that, I guess Romania and Bulgaria would have been the main contenders beforehand but they were fine! However, Italians seem to see toilet seats as unnecessary luxuries - as is toilet paper -if you even get a option to sit down at all as a number of campsites had only turkish style toilets! Still, we haven't been to France yet so that may yet be a revelation! So learning point - always carry tissues in Italy!Don't sey we never provide any useful information in this blog!