lazydog

I have found a place (not sure if restaurant/club/concert hall) in San Matteo della Decima called Pepita Caffe.

They are having a tribute to Bruce Springsteen there on April 30th although I can't get any details other than the show starts at 8:00.

We are staying in Bologna and I was told San Matteo della Decima is about 40 km out of town.

Here is my question....Does anyone know anything about this city? What is there to do? Should we arrive early and do any touring? Also, if anyone has any information on the type of place Pepita Caffe is that would be wonderful. Should we arrange for a transfer to the city or is this an easy place to take a train to?

Any help would be most appreciated. Or, am I just wasting my time with trying to visit this place all for the sake of getting a Bruce Springsteen fix?

Zerlina

San Matteo della Decima is not a city; it's a "frazione" with a population of 6000.

Pepita Caffe is a bar/restaurant/pizzeria. And according to this page, the "Tribute to Bruce Springsteen - The Sound of Asbury Park at the Pepita - Tribute to the Boss by various local and non-local bands" starts at 10 pm:
http://www.pepita-caffe.com/eventi.htm

If there is any bus service at all (there is no train) to Bologna, there would not be any after midnight. There are no taxis in San Matteo listed in the Italian Yellow Pages; there are two listed in nearby hamlets.

lazydog

Zerlina, Thank you! Since I can't read Italian I'm struggling trying to get any additional information. Do you think I need to make reservations? If so, what would be the best way to go about this process? Also, what is a "frazione"? Do you think I could arrange to hire a driver? Is that even possible? My hotel is looking into trying to help me as well. They were super sweet in a recent email I got from them. Just trying to cover my bases. Thanks again!

ellenem

if you plan to go and you want to be sure to get in, then make reservations.

Googlemaps shows that there are two buses (#536 and #556) along that road that are from this company, but I couldn't find the bus on that website:

http://www.srmbologna.it/

There's also a train from Bologna to San Giovanni in Persiceto, a town nearby that might offer a taxi that could make the 40 kms trip a bit shorter.

For me, I would probably not make this effort considering the difficulty of reaching this obscure place and returning in the late evening unless I had my own car.

zeppole

If your hotel is helping, they are going to have the best answers, like how much it will cost you to get a taxi to return.

A "frazione" is a fraction of a municipality. Some frazione are bigger than some municipalities. It's not important.

One of my indelible memories of travel was being in rural Turkey in August and listening to a local Turkish rock band cover Tom Jones "Winter World of Love". I'm not a Bruce fan, but I can imagine enjoying them more listening to them in San Matteo della Decima as sung by various locals and non-locals (from where? Minerbio?). I'm sure Hungry Heart sounds better in Italian!

It's actually not all that far from the Bologna airport, so surely there are taxis, and maybe you could cut the cost by getting a taxi to the airport, and a shuttle from there back to Bologna proper. But another possibility if the taxi fare is astronomical is to put up at a local b&b for the one night. Then you wouldn't have to worry if things run late. There's one called "Home Sweet Home| in the "localite" of San Giovanni in Persiceto, which seems to be in the same "frazione." Rooms are 60e a night.

http://www.bologna.ws/bolognawebsite_0001bc.htm

While you're in Bologna, you should stop by the Roxy bar near the Due Torri for a great cup of coffee and salt cornetto if nothing else.

Have fun!