Chiesa Santa Anastasia

Another week here in Verona, and I think its safe to say I picked a great semester to study abroad, given the crazy winter storms hitting Illinois! Italy has been getting a lot of rain, there have been lots of floods but none in Verona, thankfully. Today was the first sunny day we have had in over a week. I'd say it was worth the wait because today was gorgeous. I went on a nice run along the river and I could not get enough of the scenery. 

This week has been pretty normal, but one exciting thing we did in Art History was visit the largest church in Verona, Chiesa Santa Anastasia. It was incredible! There was a lot of history within the church walls, but one thing I thought was very interesting was the gargoyles that held the holy water on their backs, or as they call them "the hunchbacks". Our teacher, Andrea, told us it was good luck to rub both their shoulders before you leave the church. 

Santa Anastasia is a gothic style church, and there are six different alters around the church. They were all so detailed and breathtaking. Here are a few of my favorites!

The church was filled with amazing art, every inch of it was covered in a statue, painting, crosses, columns, etc. Our Art History teacher told us so much information but if he had explained everything I'm sure we would be there for days. Every little thing had a story behind it, the meanings and purpose for all the art was unique. Its so interesting to think about how old everything was that was in that church, it dates back to the 13th century. 

The ceiling was also very cool, it was mesmerizing to look at, so much detail! Santa Anastasia truly is a piece of art

The rest of my week will include Italian, Italian and more Italian… Hopefully I get this language down soon. 

Fino alla prossima volta! Until next time!