Last Wednesday

I forgot to record our walk to the Tomb of the Scaligere family. This family ruled Verona from 1277 to the end of the 14th century. They brought an era of peace and prosperity to the city. The first of them was called the Cangrande ( big dog) , another was called Cansignorio ( Lord dog) and another Mastino ( mastiff). The ‘tomb’ is a collection of gothic structures with spires, arches and lots of ornate twiddly bits.

We then went to the Basilica of Sant Anastasia and were told many details of the church and some of the paintings. The group was from the language school and , because not all the students spoke English, the guide would say everything in both English and Italian. It was interesting, but I was tired and it was hard to concentrate. I would start to switch off when the Italian started and miss the start of the next English bit, alternatively, listen to the Italian bit, understand it ( mostly), switch off when the English started - he was not consistent in which language he used first - and then miss the start of the next bit of English.