Travels in the 2nd half

Basilica San Petronio My first full day in Bologna was Easter Sunday. I was unsure of what may or may not be open for visitors. Holidays can be iffy for travelers. What I didn’t realize was that I had my holiday wrong.  I started off with breakfast at Pasticceria Saffi, a small cafe across the street from my apartment. Saffi is usually closed on Sundays, but on Easter it was open, and there was a constant flow of customers picking up the breads and cakes they wanted to help celebrate  the day.I stood at the bar with my cappuccino and ham sandwich, listening to the locals complain about the results of the football matches from the night before. Right away it was clear the Easter in Bologna was going to be different than in New York. Porto San Felice After breakfast I walked past Porto San Felice and into Bologna’s Centro Sotrico. After wandering around for a while I ended up in front of  the Basilica di San Francisco . I waited until after the morni...

Vis San Felice Bologna has always been on my “want to visit” list. On my recent trip to Italy I finally had the chance to get to some places that I had not yet seen, so Bologna was my top choice. Porto Mascarella, at the foot Via Stalingrado I am drawn to Bologna because it has a long history of supporting left-wing progressive politicians and causes. It is has a large university, so its population tends to skew younger. Driving into town along Via Stalingrado, a tribute to those who gave their lives at the Siege of Stalingrad during WWII, convinced me I was in the right place. This trip was the first time that I rented a car while traveling in Europe. So I left Florence on the highway, rather than on a train. This gave me a very different perspective to the country. For example, on my trip to Bologna, I left the expressway to find a place to have lunch. I ended up at the Trattoria Vilma , in the small town of Borgatella. My waiter spoke about as much English...