This year was the 96^th season of opera to be held in the spectacular Roman Arena at Verona.  A little older than Rome’s Coliseum, it was built around 30AD during the reign of the Emperor Caligula, and was said to be capable of holding more than 30,000 spectators.  Its outstanding acoustics has ensured its popularity for centuries, with the first operatic performances taking place in the 1850s. 

‘The pearl of islands!’ wrote the Roman poet Catullus in the 1^st century BCE, describing the town of Sirmione, on the southern shore of beautiful Lake Garda in northern Italy.  Less than 40 kms from Verona and 150 kms from Venice, Lake Garda is ideally placed to visit one of the loveliest parts of northern Italy.