Una gita a Bologna

"Una gita" is a day trip in Italian, and that's exactly what I did. In a day you can see the best parts of this city on foot. Bologna and her people, in the heart of Emiglia-Romagna, epitomize Italy in a more downhome and less ritzy way than that city to the West (Florence). The city's architecture is full of archways and most of the buildings are this lovely russet, brick red color that warms everything. I believe it's known as Bologna Red throughout the rest of Italy. The most typical food of this region is the PIADINA, a flatbread sort of like a mix between a tortilla and a pita but ten times better. It's eaten grilled, folded in half with cheese, prosciutto and/or greens on the inside, as a mid-afternoon snack.
There is a large and well-respected university in Bologna, and this gives the city a very young and hip feel, while at the same time underpinning its intellectual and cultural assests.
Every summer there is a huge outdoor concert with acts from all over the world called FestivalBar.

Quick Tips:

I arrived in Bologna on the Ferrovia dello Stato (the train) which is easy and cheap. Plus, when you get off the train, you can go two steps to the tourist office and get walking tour itineraries in a variety of languages and for varying lengths of stay. I got a three-quarter day itineray in Italian, and it took me to 13 different sites of interest (which were indeed interesting!).

Best Way To Get Around:

I didn't bother figuring out the buses, but they would be easy enough if you were tired or were staying on the outskirts of the city center. I'm a proponent of walking, as it maximizes your views of the architecture and the beautiful people.

I wish I could remember exactly where this place was, as it was such a pleasure! My waiter was a local student, and he was totally cool and relaxed and knew the regular customers by name. I ordered a pizza, and he let me customize what was on top and brought me a beer and my fizzy water with due speed. (I could have ordered pasta, meat, salad -- even though it calls itself a pizzeria it in fact had a complete menu.) The pizza itself was a bit heavier than I am used to getting in Italy, but it still was great. All told, my lunch (with very favorable exchange rate) was about $8.50. I got there just before the lunch rush hit, and boy were they slammed. The place was full of local businessmen and working women, always a good sign. And they were jovial, said hello to each other, chatted up the waiters (which is probably why I waited so long for my check, no problem!) and in general seemed to be having a great lunch break in the city center. If you cannot find this particular place, there are many such restaurants in Bologna, just move yourself off the main avenues and follow the crowd!

This piazza is the heart of Bologna. I headed straight here as soon as I arrived, and spent most of my time here. You will get a great feel for the locals, as they spend time walking about, bumming cigarettes, saying hello to friends, and wearing sunglasses for no apparent reason here. Around the piazza are many buildings and sites worthy of a visit in their own right. Behind the Piazza is the Fountain of Neptune (Fontana del Nettuno) c. 1563, which represents the Pope's power over the world (we're in Italy, after all), and has four spouts which represent the four great rivers; The Ganges, the Nile, the Amazon and the Danube (they did not yet know about the Mississipi, unfortunately).
Also in the Piazza you can find a few Palazzi. Open with exhibits of history and art are the Palazzo Re Enzo (you can go in and up to a terrace which has a great view), Palazzo del Podesta' (c. 1200's, it is built on pillars), and the Palazzo dei Notai. When I was in Bologna there were no fewer than 4 exhibits going on; I stopped in and cruised around a tribute to Charles Schultz called "Linus Ama Bologna" (see my other entry).
There's also the Palazzo D'Accursio, which contains the Museo Morandi, the Collezioni comunali d'arte antica, and a clock tower built in 1425. You can also go in to see a few of the official rooms besides the exhibits. The last Palazzo, dei Banchi, is closed to the public but really all you need to look at is the beautiful architecture of the arches (15 in total) that were built to hide the down-and-dirty goings-on of the daily market behind it. If you are sitting on the steps of the Basilica di San Petronio, these arches are to the right. You can walk through a couple of them, and it's worth it because it leads you to streets which have high window-shopping potential.

This museum has permanent exhibits as well as temporary installations. I was lured in by the exhibit "Linus Ama Bologna," or Linus Loves Bologna [the city, not the lunch meat]. It was a 50 year retrospective of the Charles Schultz' life work and of the Peanuts cartoon stip and animated specials. I truly gained a new appreciation for Schultz and Italy as I moved through this exhibit. Perhaps because I had to take my time to understand the strips in Italian, I found myself thinking deeper about the humor and humanity in Schultz' cartoons. Or perhaps it was that Peanuts was presented through the Italian lens of understanding, which made it new to me. After having gone through this installation, I would recommend to anyone abroad who encounters an exhibit of an artist from their home country to visit the exhibit and really study the way the artist is presented. This may seem contrary to the ambition to immerse oneself in the local culture while you are visitng a foreign country; however I believe considering a nation's interpretation offers valuable insight into the said country. Philospohical musings aside, the museum itself held other interesting exhibits of Italian artists, many who probably have never had an showing outside of Italy (the contemporary ones). This is another opportunity not to be passed up.

This church sits like the grand dame of Bologna, with her skirts gathered around her, surveying the to and fro of her subjects as they move about Piazza Maggiore. Before you go in, take a good long time to sit on the steps and people watch, eavesdrop (you can do this in any number of languages, as besides Italian I heard German and English), and if you are a smoker, bum a cigarette and savor it- everyone does it here. The view from here is perfect for this, as there are many steps and many more people going about their business in the Piazza. I sat here for a good 45 minutes, listening to Italian high schoolers argue about Ramazzoti and Paolo Conti and various other pop singer/songwriters. I also had a stair-mate for a few minutes who smoked himself a joint, and below me were two fine college students (grad student age) who occasionally would smile up at me.
All in all, I almost didn't even go in to the basilica to check out its virtues. I was glad I did, though, as it is a quiet haven from the caucophonous piazza. It was built in 1390 (!) but was never quite finished, like many other European structures that were started with war chest funds. The side chapels contain frescos by Giovanni da Modena, and the sundial in the middle is the largest ever built in an enclosed space (gee I wonder why?? Ha!). Besides the history and art inside (which is merely average as far as Italian churches go), the bulletin boards and flyers demonstrate an active and young parish, which I enjoy to see because it reminds me I am a guest in someone's parish, not a visitor in a museum, which can be so easy to forget when visiting ancient churches in Europe.

Look at any postcard rack in the city, and you will find many cards with the image of these two towers. They are the popular symbols of the city, even though they are only two of about 200 towers that made up the city's skyline during the Middle Ages. The Garisenda tower (c. 1120) is the leaning one (in the photos, the one on the left). If you visit, you will notice that it is supported with cables, and that it is under surveillance (as the famous leaning tower in Pisa) so it doesn't, I suppose, one day crush innocent people and nearby buildings. The other tower is called Asinelli, and has perfect posture. You can go up it to have a great view of the city (check hours of operation with the tourist office at the train station). These towers are examples of common building techniques in the Middle Ages and the day of the Italian city state. Competing families would build towers to not only demarcated and watch over their properties but also to see who could build the highest or most elaborate tower. Yes, even in the Middle Ages it was all about pissing contests and keeping up with the Balducci's.
If you arrive at the towers on foot (which, ultimately you will have to as they are in the city's historic center) you will find at thier feet an excellent bookstore. If you enjoy going into bookstores even when you can't read the language, this is a great store to do it in as it is busy, the clientele is quite goodlooking, and it's easy to see which American authors are readily translated here as well as to see which Italian authors are bestsellers in their native country.

I came across this church after getting lost in the university district. I had walked from Piazza Ravegnana through some side streets and then south along via Castiglione, when I hit the old city gate I turned north again up Viale XII Giugno. The university district is so lovely -- typically full of those red buildings and hidden piazzas and hilly narrow cobbled streets. I wanted to be a student again so I could sign up at this university, sit around in the old warm buildings with the handsome students I saw walking about, and talk philosophy, history, literature and art. The walk back up the Viale was equally as pleasant, and made my thoughts turn to how nice it would be to live in Bologna with a bit of money, for here I saw more stately homes, many trees lining the street, wide windows, and the seat of the local court system (Piazza dei Tribunali). Passing this piazza (and many bars named after judges and the Tribunale, where I imagine all the lawyers run to catch a snack while the judges are deliberating), I encountered the Chiesa de San Domenico. There was a lovely senior citizen couple sitting at thebase of this pillar with a statue on top, they were just chatting taking in the lst afternoon sun. The chruch itself is the seat of the Dominican order of priests in this city, and it is again in red brick. Inside you can find a fresco by Lippi (these famous artists just crop up everywhere in Italy). The stained galss rosette above the door is stunning, too, when viewed from inside when there is full sun. As I was taking this picture, I was almost run over by a motorist, probably a lawyer rushing to court. I didn't quite capture it, but there was the most delicious light out that day. From there I continued up via Garibaldi back to the city center.

Ok, so I got lost, and when I walked into this Porta I realized I'd taken a pleasant-but-wrong turn in the university district. So, I laughed at myself, grabbed an expresso at a bar on the corner, and took a photo to remind myself of the joys of getting lost. I love finding these old city gates, as they are such testaments to the history of a city: that was one of the city limits, and still demarcates the change from tight urban to a little more spread out and suburban (although nothing is ever really suburban in Italy, it's either urban or rural, I think).

Take a walk, go window shopping in this city, and before you know it you'll be spending like crazy. It's all so glittery and tantalizing. I recommend strolling along via dell'Indipendenza, via Rizzoli, via D'Azegli, via d'Archiginnasio and via IV Novembre for the best window shopping. Just stick to the immediate south of Piazza Maggiore in the centro storico and you cannot go wrong. And everyone windowshops, you'll be just one of many noses pressed against the glass. You will find shops of antiques, high designer clothes, jewelry galore and shoes of all types, music and books (this is a university city do not forget, so the bookstores are extraordinarily and intelligently stocked). I bought a vivid blue wool sweater from Stefanel, couldn't resist as the exchange rate was so to my advantage.