Bologna to Ravenna

Dateline Ferrara, Monday 9/9

So, when last we checked in we were heading to Bologna from Modena.  Bologna was yet another in a series of Medieval cities.  We arrived very much without a plan, parked in an underground lot and went for a walk,  basically in search of map and/or tourist office.  What we found was a nice hotel with a map and a room for the night.  We settled in, and walked the cobblestone streets of Bologna.  Lester found a little Osteria with a great online review.  We ate dinner there.  Lester’s pasta was reportedly wonderful.   My gluten free salad did the job but wasn’t amazing.  But, I settled for a nice gelato to make up for it.  The food has been pretty amazing.

We woke Saturday with a to do list, climb the tower, visit Dozza and Faenza - two additional cities.  After climbing almost 500 very irregular and narrow steps we made it to the top.  And, let me say it was worth the effort.  We went back to our room, showered and headed to Dozza.  Dozza was a gem.  Out food tour guide recommended it.  It is a medieval town where for the last almost 60 years, has had an annual event in which invited modern artists paint murals on the buildings.  It was literally an open air museum.  After strolling the art we went to Faenza to visit their ceramic museum.  Sadly it was not as wonderful as we had hoped.  We were hoping for modern ceramic artists. It was not.  I’m sad to say one of my favorite pieces was the amazing tile mosaic in the entrance.  There was also a very cool modern piece of porcelain which makes one scratch their head in wonder.  

Upon arriving back at our car we discovered a flat tire.  After trying to get roadside assistance, Lester changed the tire himself.  We took some lovely backroads to Ravenna.  Had a nice dinner with a really wonderful Sangiovese. In my opinion Ravenna’s mosaics were a highlight of the trip.  Even with the crowds we encountered.  Two years ago Will and I visited Ravenna and had the city to ourselves this time, Lester and I had to share many of the sights with rather large crowds. We believe this was partly due it being Sunday.  However, we didn’t go back for a second look this morning since we wanted to trade in the car, 

Preferably one without a run-flat.  Sadly, we needed to get to Ferrara accomplish that feat.  Happily, Ferrara was our next stop on our junket.  Monday’s can be difficult vacation days as many museums and sites are closed.  Which was somewhat true for Ferrara but we still were able to visit the castle and a number of small churches.  The main cathedral in Ferrara is closed to repair earthquake damage.  

Not sure where our next stop will be but with only four days left it might be time to head to the Lake District.  Stay tuned.