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Exterior of our hotel in Bologna, Casa Bertagni https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...e49fc0c1a.jpeg The courtyard of Casa Bertagni https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...2b3b3b59b.jpeg Piazza Maggiore - the very large main piazza in Bologna https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...cf194e172.jpeg The piazza is dominated by Basilica di San Petronio https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...e37b6f426.jpeg Neptune's Fountain in Piazza del Nettuno, which is next to Piazza Maggiore https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...cd6e851aa.jpeg Neptune's Fountain https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...48394fb2f.jpeg One of the many lovely porticoes https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...4fc5f2333.jpeg Bologna street scene https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...f2f7dd70c.jpeg Another pretty portico https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...eaf5fa730.jpeg This portico is in the University District https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...87d4c23b4.jpeg Another lovely Bologna street scene - there are many red buildings https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...17d6f0eb2.jpeg Ristorante Cesari - our tagliatelle Bolognese ragu that we shared - delicious! https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...2ef512516.jpeg My scallopine with ham and Parmesan cheese - very rich and tasty https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...bdda94bcb.jpeg Ed ordered beef cheeks for his main dish https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...d96234e8f.jpeg The interior of Ristorante Cesari. We happened to be seated next to a young couple, and we got a kick out of watching all their food arrive. They each ordered their own starter, their own first course, their own second course, and their own dessert! We couldn't believe how much food they ate. And they are slim! All their dishes looked yummy! |
Ooooo so lovely! Add me to your huge host of admirers and tag-alongs!! Italy has never been a big attraction for me, but your descriptions, photos, and *food* descriptions and photos may be changing that, lol. Thank you so much for your posts!
As an aside .... your TR actually gave me refuge from an annoying guy who wanted to be my best friend! I was at a bus stop in my town, and a friendly and slightly-smelly guy with big yellow teeth kept wanting to chat with me. He asked what game I was playing on my phone, and I said, "I'm reading ..." I was enjoying your report. So, thank you, too, for the escape! |
Originally the red of Bologna comes from the local Terra Cotta.
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Thanks for sharing those Bologna street scenes featuring the wet red paving stones. I don't think I've seen that before. A unique vision.
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Originally Posted by swandav2000
(Post 17667041)
Ooooo so lovely! Add me to your huge host of admirers and tag-alongs!! Italy has never been a big attraction for me, but your descriptions, photos, and *food* descriptions and photos may be changing that, lol. Thank you so much for your posts!
As an aside .... your TR actually gave me refuge from an annoying guy who wanted to be my best friend! I was at a bus stop in my town, and a friendly and slightly-smelly guy with big yellow teeth kept wanting to chat with me. He asked what game I was playing on my phone, and I said, "I'm reading ..." I was enjoying your report. So, thank you, too, for the escape! |
And thank you to bilboburgler and shelemm! I appreciate that you are still following along. I know this is a long TR!
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May 21: Exploring Bologna
Breakfasts this morning and the next two mornings were a real treat. In addition to the usual breakfast buffet suspects, Casa Bertagni also provided about 3 different tarts each morning, and they were all different every morning. . . . such as egg, meat, vegetables, etc. And bowls of very fresh and very sweet strawberries. The owner of Casa Bertagni would greet us at breakfast some mornings, too. After breakfast, our plan was to wander and explore Bologna with no real plan in mind. We walked down some interesting streets, and then quite by accident, ended up in Piazza Santo Stefano, where the awesome Basilica di Santo Stefano is located. This is our favorite part of Bologna. We loved Piazza Santo Stefano, which is smaller than Piazza Maggiore, and more intimate and prettier than Piazza Maggiore. I had read about Basilic di Santo Stefano and knew I wanted to see it, so luckily I was able to convince Ed it was worth visiting. We both fell in love with the Basilica immediately! This is considered Bologna’s most unique religious site. It is a labyrinth of “interlocking ecclesiastical structures dating back to the 11th century whose architecture incorporates Romanesque, Lombard and even ancient Roman elements.” In Roman times this was a pagan temple dedicated to the goddess, Isis. There were seven churches originally but due to a restructuring in the 1800's, there are now 4 churches and 3 other religious sites, such as the cloisters and Pilates courtyard. A really fascinating and interesting place to visit. From here we slowly headed back towards Piazza Maggiore and the old food market, Quadrilatero, which was surprisingly quiet, and this was around lunch time. We continued walking to Mercato delle Erbe, a small market inside a market hall, where we had lunch at the fish market. Then back to Piazza Maggiore where we decided to take the tourist train, which was a lot of fun. And it was nice to rest our legs! We had dinner reservations for tonight at Trattoria Da Me Torre. This is by Piazza Maggiore and about a 20-minute walk from our hotel. There is another Da Me restaurant but it’s further out, and according to my research, Trattoria Da Me Torre supposedly has a nicer ambience. For a starter, I ordered tortellini with broth, and Ed had asparagus soup with pasta and meatballs. Ed ordered lamb for his main, and I had cod with chick peas. We have mixed reactions to the restaurant. I enjoyed everything but my one complaint about my cod is that this was the smallest piece of cod I’ve ever been served. I would have preferred more cod and fewer chick peas. Ed was disappointed in his lamb because he was expecting a heartier piece of meat. And he complained again that the chef was trying to be too creative and create dishes that look like a Picasso painting! I had no idea, after all these years, that my husband has such a strong aversion to “fancy” restaurants. He wants good hearty home-cooking! I sometimes like fancy restaurants. I am certainly not saying people shouldn’t dine here. The food is delicious and the service was first class. |
I'm very much enjoying your detailed report and beautiful photos Karen. You did such a great job of covering Florence that I now feel I don't need to go, which is a good thing as I cannot deal with crowds. Those tomatoes and strawberries look wonderful and your lovely food photos are making me hungry!
Looking forward to your impressions of Varenna and Lake Como. |
Looks like chick peas are popular!
I hope Varenna didn't look like this when you were there: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...-protests.html |
This trip report is such a treat, I don't want this to end!
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Originally Posted by Melnq8
(Post 17667150)
Looks like chick peas are popular!
I hope Varenna didn't look like this when you were there: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...-protests.html |
More great pictures! I loved Santo Stefano. It seemed to me that you could just feel the age.
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Still following too. The graffiti in Bologna reminds me of Brooklyn.
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Originally Posted by SusanP
(Post 17667169)
More great pictures! I loved Santo Stefano. It seemed to me that you could just feel the age.
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Great report KarenWoo. I love the porticos in Bologna. You have such great pictures of them. We were in Bologna in 2016 and loved it. We took a day trip to Florence and, as you and others recount, found it way too crowded. We thought at the time, "we have Bologna. Who needs Florence?" But I've heard from friends who've been to Bologna recently and found it crowded there too. However, I don't see crowds in your pictures?
On the same trip we spent a few days in Cinque Terre, staying in Monterosso. Our experience was that there are many day trippers in Cinque Terre. But once they clear out it is lovely and you soon feel like a local if you're staying over for multiple nights. |
Thank you tripplanner001, esm and joduhl.
joduhl, I had also been hearing that Bologna was now becoming too crowded. But we didn't find that to be the case when we were there. It was raining off and on during the day that we arrived so perhaps that is partially the reason? Maybe some people visit Bologna as a daytrip and decided not to come that day because of the rain. I would urge anyone who is planning on visiting the CT to spend a few nights. That is the key to enjoying the CT. Daytrippers see the CT at its worse. |
Originally Posted by KarenWoo
(Post 17667267)
Thank you tripplanner001, esm and joduhl.
joduhl, I had also been hearing that Bologna was now becoming too crowded. But we didn't find that to be the case when we were there. It was raining off and on during the day that we arrived so perhaps that is partially the reason? Maybe some people visit Bologna as a daytrip and decided not to come that day because of the rain. I would urge anyone who is planning on visiting the CT to spend a few nights. That is the key to enjoying the CT. Daytrippers see the CT at its worse. We were in Bologna some 10 years ago , liked it very much …the green hills around the city , the feel of a really old place, the Sanctuary of San Luca ,even the student’ quarters were interesting . |
May 21: The Dazzling Mosaics of Ravenna
After our hearty and delicious breakfast, we took a taxi to the train station for our daytrip to Ravenna. I purchased our regional train tickets in the taxi on the way to the station. It is so convenient having the Trenitalia app on my phone. The ride to Ravenna was about one hour and 10 minutes. I purchased our tickets for the Ravenna mosaics online about a month before we flew to Italy. In my research, I found someone’s blog about the mosaics. The blogger recommended the best order of seeing the mosaics if you arrive by train and so that you don’t have to backtrack. This is the order we followed: · Basilica of S. Apollinare Nuovo · Neonian Baptistry · Archbishop’s Museum (next door to the Baptistry) · Mausoleum of Galla Placidia · Basilica San Vitale (next door to the Mausoleum) Whether or not this is the best order is anyone’s guess. I sort of regret saving Basilica San Vitale for the end because then our energy level (and Ed’s interest) was sagging. The Mausolio di Galla Placidia and the Battistero Neoniano require timed entry tickets, and you are allowed only 5 minutes inside. However, I don’t think they enforce this time limit unless perhaps it is very, very busy, which it wasn’t when we were there. The Ravenna masterpieces are stunning with their brilliant gold, emerald and sapphire mosaics. It is well worth visiting Ravenna to see them, and I don’t regret it. But I think visiting all 5 were overkill for my husband. He was very impressed with the Basilica of S. Apollinare Nuovo, and he appreciated the Neonian Baptistry, but after that he was done. He waited outside while I went inside the Mausoleum, and we rushed through Basilica San Vitale, which is too bad because I think Basilica San Vitale is just as impressive as S. Apollinare Nuovo. During our quick lunch in Ravenna, I purchased our return train tickets when I had an idea of when we would be finished. The regional trains back and forth from Bologna to Ravenna run hourly so it’s very convenient. Our last dinner in Bologna was at Trattoria Anna Marie, recommended by our hotel. They made reservations for us. This was about a 5-minute walk from Casa Bertagni, so very convenient. First, we shared a platter of different kinds of meat. For my main, I ordered a delicious and filling lasagna, and Ed had a pork dinner. He enjoyed this meal more than his meal last night at Trattoria Da Me. Final Thoughts on Bologna: We liked Bologna, and we are glad that we visited, but we did not fall in love with Bologna. Ed didn’t care for the graffiti which didn’t bother me as much as it bothered him. We were both disappointed in the Quadrilatero Market. We much preferred the Il Mercato Centrale in Florence, which is larger, more vibrant and more bustling, has more to look at, and more food choices. I appreciated the porticoes but Ed was underwhelmed by them. Piazza Maggiore didn’t excite either one of us. However, we both fell in love with Piazza Santo Stefano and the Basilica di Santo Stefano. That was the highlight of Bologna for us. Bologna might be a city where we would have to spend more time to appreciate it more. It didn’t grab us the way Parma or Verona did. |
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Basilica di Sant'Apollinare Nuovo - with its brilliant mosaics. Dante Alighieri described Ravenna's mosaics as a "Symphony of colour". https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...8d6d9311d.jpeg Close-up view of the altar https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...59d826fba.jpeg Sant'Apollinare Nuovo is one of our favorites - so visually stunning https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...7e84abd09.jpeg I love the colors https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...3a4637f5e.jpeg Sant'Apollinare Nuovo https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...0eadbac94.jpeg Ravenna has porticoes, too! https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...18f1473cc.jpeg Exterior of Battistero Neoniano - Ravenna's oldest intact building https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...ec0935e61.jpeg Beautiful altar and mosaics https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...8fd367eda.jpeg Domed ceiling https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...2f44dc567.jpeg Baptismal font https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...b3e2197a3.jpeg Ivory throne of Bishop Maximian at the Archbishop's Museum https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...60b97422c.jpeg Mausoleum of Galla Placidia - the mosaics here are the oldest in Ravenna https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...4d723d723.jpeg Mausoleum of Galla Placidia https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...c4d433a0c.jpeg Love the brilliant blues https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...4323578bc.jpeg Exterior of Basilica San Vitale https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...92e1c6265.jpeg Interior of Basilica San Vitale https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...3686abda9.jpeg Basilica San Vitale https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...e23d2eb7a.jpeg Charcuterie platter at Trattoria Anna Marie https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...af86bd3a7.jpeg I ordered lasagne; Ed ordered pork; and we shared a platter of roast potatoes and vegetable at Trattoria Anna Marie |
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