Travels in the 2nd half

Lion's tower of Castello Estenese Having spent three days in Bologna, it was time to move on, and I was off to Padua. The drive was a short one, and I had time to make a stop, so I decided to visit the city of Ferrara. Ferrara sits near the delta of the Po River, and its history is a long one. Construction projects during the 1920’s unearthed Etruscan durian sites dating back to 600 BCE. The name Ferrara first appeared in written records around 700 ACE. After several centuries of struggle for control, the city, and the royal title that goes with it, fell to the Estes family, which ruled from 1264 until 1598. It was during their rule that Ferrara’s main tourist attraction, Castello Estense, was built. But more on that later. In 1570, a major earthquake hit the city, and greatly disrupted its economy. The blow was so severe that it really didn’t recover until the 1930’s, when it changed from an agricultural trade center to an industrial one. Today. It has a population of 130,00...

My vacation had brought me to Bologna on Easter Sunday. I was worried about finding restaurants and museums open to visit. I needn’t have been, everything was in full swing on Easter. What I didn’t know is that the in Italy, Easter MONDAY in the holiday. So there I was, looking for a place to have breakfast on Holy Monday, and having trouble finding even a small cafe that was open. I walked over a mile in my search, and by the time I ate and returned to my apartment my legs were telling me that they needed a rest day after a week of touring Florence and Bologna. Dozza's Gates This vacation to Italy had already been full of surprises, but maybe the biggest one was coming up on this day. I decided to take advantage of having a car, and driving the 36 Km (22 miles) to the town of Dozza. I left the big city around 0930 and about an hour later, I was pulling onto a football field that was being used as a parking lot in the small town. Why the extra parking? Well, Dozza was throw...

Palazzo d'Accursio Bologna is an old city with a history in education. It is home to beautiful churches and distinctive porticoed streets. It is also home to some wonderful museums that offer both classic and innovative views of art. After spending Easter morning visiting some churches (see last weeks post ) I ate lunch and took in two of those museums. For lunch I walked half a block off of the Piazza Maggiore, to a great lunch place, the salumeria Simoni Laboratorio . In 1960, the Simoni family opened a salumeria in the Centro Storico of Bologna, two blocks from the center square of the city. In 2015 they opened their restaurant/laboratory on via Pescherie Vecchia II where you can order and eat from a menu of sandwiches and plates. I ordered the ballerina and for €5 I received a large sandwich of amazing ham and pecorino cheese. It was delicious. Salumeria Plate at Simoni Laboratorio Meat and Cheese for sale  After lunch I walked across the...

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...