Emilia-Romagna
Once again, this post is a few days old now. Sorry, shitty internet connection to blame this time.
Ravenna. Mosaics. Snap. I thought I about playing a drinking game where I'd drink a glass of grappa every time someone said the word 'mosaic' when I mentioned Ravenna but realised there'd then be little chance of me ever making it out the door.
So yes, there are Mosaics in Ravenna, they are ancient and beautiful and speak to the wealth of a city that has been a seat of regional power for the Holy Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, the Franks and the Lombards. Dante also hung out here once Florence became a bit of a drag.
Hat tip to Invader as well who had taken the time to do his little homage to the mosaics with haloed space invaders all over the city.
For us though, it means cooler weather and autumn leaves. I've been wearing trousers for the first time in months. There's also a clear cultural shift as we move into more prosperous regions.
The next stop was Bologna where we were briefly reunited with mum. Love Bologna. Two days was no where near enough. It reminded me of Paris in one important way - the stench of piss - but it is home to the world's oldest University and with that many students around, so what does one expect?
The first night out was a boozy one with Mum. Dinner at one of her favourite Osterias where we ate and drank our fill. The next day was a bit of a wonder around having a look at a few churches and the likes, as one does.
For me the highlight was the Archiginnasio which houses both the Archiginnasio Municipal Library and an Anatomical theatre which once belonged to the University of Bologna. Anatomical theatre is a lecture hall with a marble slab in the middle of the room where medial procedures were preformed for the benefit of the youngsters. The Library had loads of old books in it (I don't mean to mock - it's an impressive collection).
Moreover the building was just really wonderful. An ode to the enlightenment amongst other things. That said, during the Inquisition, a careful eye was kept on the medical procedures being preformed in case of heretics. Tough gig.
Our second night in Bologna, Mum was going around to her landlords for dinner (that woman needs a lesson in class war) so Ariane and I hit the town. It was a Saturday night and plenty of people were on the streets eating, drinking, singing and dancing. We bounced from place to place along the market street getting a few drinks and trying the local food along the way. A really special night with my beautiful wife.
This morning we left Mum and made our way towards Parma, via Modena. Towns around here sound like deli items which means it's a good place to eat.
One day I'm going to write something like 'the town lacked architectural flair', but not today, Modena is yet another beautiful Italian town.
It is notorious for a few things: Ferrari, Lamborghini, Communist Mayors and Balsamic Vinegar. It was a Sunday afternoon and most things were shut but we eventually found a restaurant that would serve us various forms of pasta drenched in balsamic vinegar. Unfortunately the meal took ages to arrive which meant we had to cut our planned trip to the Ferrari Museum, much to our disappointment, in order to make our way onto Parma for the night.
Tonight we've been out for an aperitivo at a recommended place where, if your drink costs over €5, you get free reign on the antipasta buffet. Being that were are in Parma (you know, Parma Ham and all) it was delicious so we scoffed down a few plates and had no need for dinner.
Parma is yet another beautiful town and one of the wealthiest in Italy. Wide pedestrian boulevards and full of salumerias as you might expect.
I don't know that there's a hell of a lot to do in Parma as a tourist but you'd be happy to just hanging out, living from meal to meal for a few days. But sadly we cannot, the Cinque Terra beckons.
