Italy

Our last day – PAR TOT!

On our last day in Italy we unexpectedly found ourselves in the middle of a huge event called “Par Tot” (meaning “For All”). I had a great vantage point standing on the edge of the Neptune fountain, joined by our friend Patrick from MN. It was a city wide event of costumes, music, dancing, floats, […]

Continue reading »

Italy

Bologna Day 5

What’s left to do? Ah, the Museum of Medieval History. Most museums we are accustomed to feature collections gathered from around the world, typical of an era or a people. But in Bologna, the collections are of local history. Bologna is unique in that, while other cities exalt rich men with massive tombs, the Bolognese […]

Continue reading »

Italy

Bologna Day 4

Awoke late today. Despite the best efforts of our most hard-working maid, our room is starting to smell funny. Heat. Bananas. Cheese. Bad combo. But it’s raining, which is lovely. A cool drizzle. The Italians are freezing. We are loving it. After breakfast, we spent hours and hours at the Archeological Museum, an amazing collectionof […]

Continue reading »

Italy

Bologna Day 3

Got an early start today, and discovered a whole area of town not seen before, just outside our hotel. Toy shop, meat shop, restaurant, bunch of cops standing around waiting for trouble that never happens. First stop — The Basilica of San Francesco, built in 1237. Outside are the Tombs of the Glossarists — airborne […]

Continue reading »

Italy

Bologna Day 2

An earlier start today, as we have learned that everything closes at 1, and that by 1 we will be exhausted and sweaty and will need to go back to the hotel to dry out. A creepy mime greets us in the Piazza, a small part of the endless activity there. We see a Ferrari […]

Continue reading »

Italy

Bologna Revisited – Day 1

We left Minneapolis at 3:25ish, after a slight delay due to an Indian woman’s anxiety attack. After her husband’s pleas for either a roomier seat or anxiety drugs were rebuffed, they left, and the baggage handlers had to rummage through and “deplane” their bags. Arrived Amsterdam 11 p.m. Minneapolis time/7 a.m. Amsterdam time. Arrived Bologna […]

Continue reading »