Romeo and Juliet Balcony Now Open to Same-Sex Couples

One of Italy's most popular spots for lovers—the balcony in Verona where Romeo supposedly pitched woo at Juliet—will soon be available to all couples, the Guardian reports. The Verona city council announced this week that all municipal venues used for heterosexual wedding ceremonies must also be available for same-sex civil unions. The Casa di Giulietta is one such popular venue. It's a renovated medieval residence that once belonged to the del Cappellos, a family said to be the inspiration for the Capulets in Romeo and Juliet. Flavio Tosi, mayor of Verona, says it's “significant because the house of Juliet is a symbol and the city of Verona is symbolic, too." This year, Italy became the last major European country to legalize same-sex civil unions, though it stopped short of legalizing same-sex marriage. (More Romeo and Juliet stories.)