Bologna

Arriving

We left our apartment in Florence with plenty of time until our train and with three contingency plans for reaching the station (an hour and a half's walk from the apartment). Our first plan was to catch the line 20 bus. From what we had seen so far, Florence's bus system was very effective, with every bus arriving on the dot or sometimes earlier than the scheduled time, and this was further proven as we stood at the bus stop and watched every incoming bus pull in on time. Every bus apart from ours, that is. We seem to have a knack for choosing the only bus or train with a delay, and this was the case now, as we watched a five-minute delay turn to ten and then twenty. Twiddling our thumbs and keeping an eye on the clock, we weighed up our options. When the second scheduled line 20 bus failed to show, we decided to head to a train station 24 minutes away. There were 2 trains that would take us to the station we needed on time: one was leaving in twenty minutes, and the other was leaving in forty. Surely we would miss the first train - but, ever up for a challenge, we flung on our backpacks and began to half-walk, half-run towards the station. I held google maps out in front of me and watched as the arrival time moved forwards. When we reached the station we had cut six minutes off of the predicted twenty-four. Was this enough to make the train? We sped through the station, I bought a virtual ticket on Trainline as we passed through the gates, and just before the conductor blew the final whistle we jumped on the train. There was a moment of hesitation as we pulled away - had we double-checked that this was the right train? - but within just five minutes we were deposited onto the right platform. This was good timing, too, as the train to Bologna arrived early. We settled into our seats and plugged in podcasts, but before long, the train had ground to a halt: there had been a breakdown on the line and we would have to wait half an hour for it to be cleared. This was not our day for travel! 

When we arrived in Bologna, we trudged the 30-minute walk to our accommodation as if we were sleepwalking. We were only vaguely aware of our surroundings, and having realised that we were walking through Bologna's central shopping streets with our backpacks on, we devoted most of our attention to powering down the pavement without knocking anyone out with our bags - apart from the people who got in our way, that is. When we arrived at the accommodation we simply unlocked a coded box and pulled out a set of keys, then made our way up a set of stairs into our corridor. Although we are only renting one room, we are the only room on our floor and have full access to a kitchen, bathroom, and study area, so it feels like we are living in our own apartment. 

Our Apartment

That evening, feeling pretty exhausted, we headed out to find a takeout restaurant. Bologna is the world's oldest university and we are living smack in the middle of the student district, so there were two main options, pizza or noodles. We opted for seafood rice noodles (4 euros each) and took them back to the apartment, where we ate them on our balcony overlooking the small square of houses in our complex. These houses are typically Bolognese, each painted a bright shade of red, orange, or yellow - the whole city is painted in these colours, often with blue or green shutters, making the whole city look like a rainbow. With that, we planned where to visit during our stay and got some welcome sleep.

Pretty Streets

Day 1

This morning we set no alarm, and after the added tasks of finding blister plasters and sticking them all over Max's brutalized feet, we headed into the city quite late. We had no distinct plan of areas to visit today, so instead, we followed our noses. All of the streets are enticing, with their charming multi-coloured walls making the city look like an illustration from a children's book. We even discovered that Bologna has its own canal to compete with Venice and leaning towers to compete with Pisa. 

The Canal

The Leaning Towers

Soon enough we found ourselves in a large square packed with market stalls selling clothes for 50 cents. Max could only sigh as I trawled through the various boxes, pulling out fabric in all shapes and colours, but soon enough he managed to drag me away and we returned to the streets. Here, there were even more oddities in little vintage shops. We discovered a chaotic old bookshop with dog-eared copies of English and Italian books alike, and we found more second-hand clothing stores with piles of Italian fabrics. It was very hard to keep my wallet in my bag. 

The Market

The Vintage Book Shop

Walking through the streets of Bologna, there is a noticeable advantage to the streets of Florence and Rome. Here, the buildings all feature vast porticos, which are archways expanding from the sides of the building. This began as a way of expanding properties without using up more land, so became a way for the Bolognese to renovate their homes without paying much land tax, apart from on the few square metres occupied by pillars. It soon became clear that these porticos were also good protection from the sun and the rain, and they have become a staple of the city, making it much more pleasant to walk in. 

Porticos...

... and some more

During the hottest part of the day we retreated back to the apartment, but we ventured back outside in the evening to explore some more and find some dinner. We discovered more oddities like a large castle in the center of the city, and as we walked through the central areas we enjoyed watching well-dressed Italians drink after-work aperitifs whilst still dressed in suits and designer jackets. As we walked, the sun began to dip below the houses, beginning a beautiful sunset.

A Castle

A Sunset

The restaurant we visited was, as usual, a Fork find, and we had chosen it for its specialty in local dishes. Bologna is nicknamed La Grassa (the fat one) based on its incredible cuisine, so we were excited to tuck into two dishes, tagliatelle al ragu (spaghetti bolognese) and tortellini in brodo (stuffed pasta in a broth soup). We were one of just two tables and the waiter doted on us completely, dishing out parmesan cheese and making friendly conversation. The food itself was incredible - one of the best meals I've had so far - and as we were sat on a fairly busy street it was fun to people-watch while we ate. Be it the food, the streets, or the shops, there seems to be something for everyone in Bologna. 

Day 2

Today we headed out with a bit more of an agenda. We had a list of the key tourist sights but were also looking forward to walking through more of the city's beautiful streets and porticos. Our day included lots of churches, from small and gothic structures to vast and cavernous halls, and these churches also functioned as free art museums to see the styles, history, and artwork of Bologna through the ages. In the center, where we spent most of our time, the many rows of designer stores (the city is home to everyone from Gucci to Rolex) are bookended by weird and wonderful buildings, and there is somehow none of the snobbiness that could be expected. There were more mini castles, some statues, and plenty of topsy-turvy houses. 

An Odd Church

Bologna has really surprised us so far with its charm. Literally all of the streets are bright and cheerful, with their rainbow facades matching the rainbow bags carried by the large student population in honour of LGBTQ rights. This is a very young, hip, and liberal city despite the fact that its foundations are ancient, and the coexistence of archaic beauty and modern cultures makes this city really interesting. It feels very similar to Oxbridge in its quaintness, but with an Italian twist. 

Rainbow Streets

When surrounded by university students, we felt like we should see the university itself. The key buildings are built in a cluster very near to our apartment, and there is a very nice feel about the place. This is the best university in Italy, and it is clear why - the academic facilities seem great, and with so many bars, cycle paths, and quirky surroundings, the student satisfaction must be high. 

The Student District

For dinner, we headed to another restaurant that served local dishes. This one didn't come with a discount, but it had reasonably priced dishes and very high ratings on Tripadvisor. We were given a rare luxury in the form of an appetizer of goats cheese with sliced bread - something which we tentatively enjoyed while wondering what its price tag was - before being presented with the dishes we had ordered. Both were very tasty, with my almond, pesto and sundried tomato ravioli melting in the mouth, but there was one downside: the dishes were very small. In Italian dining culture, restaurant guests will usually order a combination of two or three dishes from roughly four sections of the menu: 'antipasti' (starter), 'primi' (first course), 'secondi' (second course), and 'dolce' (dessert). Because of this, whilst a single main of pasta has so far usually filled us up, at restaurants like the one we visited tonight, one dish is not enough. This problem was quickly fixed by a bag of Carrefour crisps when we got home. 

Day 3

This morning we swapped city tourism for a hike through the hills, although not quite in the style we might have expected. One of Bologna's famous landmarks is the longest portico in the world, the Portico di San Luca, which is a 3.8km covered walkway connecting the city to a monastery on the top of a hill. In the heat, it felt like a fair trek, with the walk mostly consisting of stairs and slopes to reach the top (a 215m elevation gain). The arches doubled as great viewing points to see the city, and as we climbed higher and higher, we could see the whole of Bologna laid out beneath us. The rising heat made the walk gruelling at points, but this is a favoured running route of some of Bologna's fitness fanatics who never failed to motivate us as they breezily jogged past. 

The Uphill Climb

Views of Bologna

 

When we finally ascended the top of the stairs, we were met with the beautiful sight of the Sanctuary di San Luca itself. An impressive, curving, bright-red building, the Sanctuary stood out against the blue sky like a beacon. We walked up yet more stairs and corridors to reach the perfect spot and looked out on the valleys surrounding us. From this side of the Sanctuary, Bologna was hardly visible, but the rolling hills of the countryside stretched out across the horizon. We popped inside the Sanctuary itself to find a clean but decorative interior filled with a fair number of worshippers. This has historically been a place of pilgrimage and remains so to this day: we watched family groups and congregations gather to take in the views, but also to worship. We also saw hardcore modern-day pilgrims; young people around our age lugging backpacks and camping kit to the top of the hill. Watching them toil their way up the hill as we were climbing back down stopped us complaining about the heat!

The Sanctuary

The Corridors

 

We had to do a few laps of the Basilica itself to feel like we had taken it in. Despite being a walkable distance from the city, it feels very far away from the urban hubbub - we really enjoyed the calm, quiet atmosphere of the place as well as the stunning views that it offered. We sat for a while just gazing out at the forests and farmland in the distance, and it felt as if we had been transported to somewhere very rural and unspoiled. 

Beautiful Views

 

Eventually, we refilled our water bottles and headed back down the long portico. Soon enough we were in the outskirts of the city, and it was fun exploring these streets that we may not otherwise have come across. There were no tourists, but instead plenty of cafes burbling with Italian chatter and grocery shops with overflowing crates of fruit outside the doorways. 

The Way Down

That evening, we booked another discounted restaurant and headed there for some more local cuisine. I put my vegetarianism on pause to try the famous tagliatelle al ragu (spaghetti bolognese) - the sauce was delicious, but the best part of the dish was the pasta itself, which was handmade and cooked to melt-in-the-mouth perfection. Max ordered an interesting dish featuring portions of 3 dishes on the menu: he had lasagna, sausage spaghetti, and herb ravioli all on one plate. The food here was genuinely amazing and the waiters were incredibly friendly, whilst the number of bars surrounding us created a fun Friday-night atmosphere.

Bologna in the Evening

We took many detours on the walk home to make the most of Bologna at night. It was really buzzing, with every street being more packed than they ever were during the day, and it was great to see students and families alike making the most of the clear night. Bologna is really quite a magical place, and it feels like our time here has passed in a flash: our evening ended with the packing of bags ready for our journey to Verona tomorrow!