June 19th, 2004 | The lowdown by Jara Gatti

The Cheapest Hostel in Italy.

If you're traveling through Verona, a historical city that especially appeals to the romantics out there, there's a great, cheap hostel (or ostello, an important Italian vocabulary word) tucked up above the main town.

For L 13,50 per person, per night including breakfas, decent rooms, cheap laundry on the premises, and a lovely, natural setting, this place is a bargain. Since we had Interrail, we ended up staying here 4 nights and taking the train to Venice and back 3 days (it's about a 1.5 hour ride) and saved money. You can have dinner here, too, but we didn't because it's kind of pricey, so I don't know what the standards are. There is a great little restaurant at the bottom of the hill at the triangular corner of Via S. Chiara and Via Rigaste Redentore which I wholeheartedly recommend.

To get to the Ostello, you definitely want to take the bus, as it's a couple of kilometers from the train station. Take #73 during the day and #91 at night, and just ask your driver when you get on if he's going to the Ostello.

We had some of the most amazing experiences with friendly bus drivers in Verona! The first day, the driver got off the bus to give me explicit directions to the ostello. Another night, we asked a random driver what bus to take, and he told us to hop on. He then drove us across town at breakneck speeds (and trust me, you haven't lived till you've driven on an Italian bus, or better yet, cab or private car), caught up with the correct bus, passed him, slammed on the brakes, leapt out of the bus and threw himself in front of oncoming traffic to get the other driver's attention, so that he would stop and allow us on. All with a cool nod of the head and "ciao, bella". Really, all the bus drivers were this nice, so don't be afraid to ask.

You'll get dropped off at a little park area right next to the river. Walk away from the river and cross the big street and look for the yellow ostello signs for Ostello della Giovent?ey're scattered throughout the neighborhood and lead you straight to it.

So enjoy your time in beautiful, medieval Verona, and be sure to check out "Juliet's House" (truly one of the weirder tourist sites you'll ever see), and when it comes to the ostello, don't forget: "People lacking in sobriety and cleanliness are not admitted"!