 |
| The Entrance to our Wine Cellar Studio in Bologna Complete with Curious Furry Friend |
We had a week and a half in the Italian countryside booked between our time in Ireland and our time in Turkey, and we needed four days of filler in Italy before heading “out” to Umbria. We considered Rome, Florence, Venice, and Milan: all major destinations, all with plenty of flight options coming from Dublin. Unfortunately though, we’ve been to all these cities multiple times, and none of the airfares to get to these places was particularly exciting.
I know, I know: woe is us, having the dilemma of being forced to choose between the best cities of Italy.
At some point, some interesting fares to Bologna showed up. Not only was it an Italian city we hadn’t seen, but it was pretty convenient to where we would need to be four days later. Then we found a cool-looking and reasonably-priced AirBnB listing: a studio converted from a wine cellar. Oh, and this city is the namesake of “Bolognese” Italian cuisine, as in spaghetti bolognese.
Enough said: book it, Dano.
 |
| Neptune Fountain, Bologna |
Bologna (pronounced “Boe-LOE-Nyuh”, not “Baloney”) is just enough off the beaten path to make it an interesting city for seasoned visitors to Italy to consider adding to their itinerary. It has a great airport–not too large, not too small–and it sits along the north-south rail arteries. We’re pretty sure we’ve passed through Bologna before on our way to or from Florence or Rome or Venice. In addition to Bolognese cuisine, Bologna is known for its churches, its porticos, and its university, all of which we’ll blog about for the next couple of days. We spent three days here, but most people on 2-week or less vacations could see the top spots in a day and a half.
Add a half-day to a day if you really like spaghetti bolognese.
 |
| Lori on One of the Many Miles of Bologna’s Portico’s |
 |
| Phenomenal Church Art in Bologna: The Anguish of One of the Women at the Crucifixion |
