Italy: Day 6

Around Bologna

As I write this post, we are one month out from the day we arrived Bologna. Quite honestly, where I could tell you lots about the history of Torino, the first city we visited, there's very little I remember about the history of Bologna. I do remember that the buildings and architecture were exquisite, as LonelyPlant.com describes. The day we were there, Saturday, May 12, had been declared a Day of Mourning due to the suicide five days earlier of beloved local politician Maurizio Cevenini. Many of the streets around the city center were closed to vehicular traffic for the day. And the day was unseasonably hot. Add the heat to the number of people milling around downtown to participate in the festivities or catch sight of the local celebrities and VIPs, then mix it in with the fact that I had been having knee problems almost every day of the trip, and you get a little explanation for why I didn't remember much. But let me describe what I do remember.

The Basilica di San Petronio faces the Piazza Maggiore. There was a church on the site around 1000, but it was destroyed by fire in 1141. It was rebuilt by order of Pope Lucius III and dedicated in 1184. The most amazing feature of this church, to me, was the perpetual calendar on the floor. In this sun calendar, a hole in the ceiling of the cathedral projects a shaft of sunlight onto this bronze strip on the pavement below, which is engraved with the days of the year and signs of the zodiac. (Click the previous sentence, then scroll down about six paragraphs on the target page to see a photo on the right.) I was astonished to think of the level of knowledge that the designers and engineers possessed in the 17th century to create this clock! More information on Bologna, including San Petronio.

The oldest medical school in Europe is in Bologna. And my mind was blown seeing Teatro Anatomico, the classroom where the science of anatomy was taught and the art of dissections began. "Cedar-wood tiered seats surround a central marble-topped table while a sculptured Apollo looks down from the ceiling. The canopy above the lecturer’s chair is supported by two skinless figures carved into the wood." Reference: LonelyPlanet.com "It was common practice for the professor of anatomy to sit in a large, ornate chair elevated above the dissection proceedings, reading from an anatomical text and providing commentary, while a demonstrator, or surgeon, physically performed the dissection. Additionally, an ostensor was present to point out the specific parts of the body that were being examined." Reference - See "Teaching Practices." Another reference indicates these dissections and anatomy lessons only occurred annually during Carnival. As I sat there, thinking about the students in the mid-1600s sitting where I was sitting, I couldn't help but think of my daddy, who went to medical school in the early 1940s and spent his career as a general practitioner and general surgeon. He was able to do what he loved to do because this marble table and this very classroom existed three hundred years earlier. It was a very moving experience for me.

After visiting San Petronio, our guide took us on a stroll through the Saturday street markets in Bologna, in the area east of Piazza Maggiore, towards the university. Well, "stroll" isn't exactly the right word. The area was packed! We had trouble staying together in the crush of people.

The official tour was complete for the day, and it was almost lunchtime. Couples and groups split off to find places for lunch, and the Jazzman and I decided to get a little shopping done before lunch. (Truthfully, I decided and the Jazzman was very kind to humor me!) As we stopped earlier on the corner of Via Clavature and Via Massimo D'Azeglio on the Piazza Maggiore a few steps west of San Petronio, I was surprised and thrilled to see an upscale fabric shop, all'Orologio. So the first place I wanted to head after the group broke up was back there to see what they had. A delightful salesman knew enough English that I was able to get a great piece of rayon jersey for a t-shirt to remind me of the trip. Then we walked back across the piazza to a store with a window-full of fabulous bold chunky costume jewelry. I bought a fabulous silk and turquoise pendant necklace for my daughter-in-law, then quickly decided to get a fun necklace for myself.

When we left the fabric store after the previous purchase, the salesman gave us a card for a restaurant, saying it was one of his favorites and suggesting we have lunch there. He had shown us the location on the tourist map, and it appeared to be only about eight blocks away, so we set off in that direction. (I have mentioned that I was having trouble walking because of a bum knee, right?) We kept comparing street signs to the marks on the map, and kept walking, and walking, and …. When we reached a street corner and were absolutely certain we had gone too far, we turned around. A shoplady was standing in her door, so we tried to ask where the street or restaurant was. She looked at the map and pointed us straight ahead for two blocks, then left for three blocks. More walking. No restaurant. I had been religiously guarding my data usage on my iPhone to keep the bill low, but finally turned it on and searched for the address. After more turning around and walking, we found the restaurant. (Did I mention the day was unseasonably hot?) Had we walked half a block past the lady we asked, and turned right, the restaurant was two doors down that street!

By this time we're hot and sweaty and hungry. The restaurant did not have an outside patio, so we went in. It was about 1:15, and only one table was occupied. We selected a table and sat down in this lovely white-linen-tablecloth establishment. With no air conditioning. And no fan. And a lot of heat!

The Jazzman ordered a beer and I ordered a sparking water, and we practically guzzled them to cool off. The waitress brought menus and delivered the perfunctory ceramic cylinder of breadsticks, then retired to the bar to let us study the menu. The longer we sat there in the heat, the more sure we were that we were not eating lunch in this restaurant! When the waitress came back over and asked what we would like, we said that was all we were going to have. "Oh, no," she countered, "you can't do that!" We explained that it was too hot and we just couldn't stay there. After finishing our drinks and using the restrooms, we approached the bar to pay for our refreshment. She kindly explained that when a diner enters a restaurant and sits at a table (rather than on a patio), one must pay the table charge, which includes the bread and—I guess—the cost of their having to rent more linens and wash the utensils. "Next time," she said, "go to a restaurant with a patio." We told her we understood and thanked her for her kindness. We explained that we had fully intended to eat there but couldn't take the heat. (Truly, with only one table occupied, why wouldn't they have welcomed us to stay and kept plying us with more iced beverages?!)

At least now our knees and feet were rested, so we started out walking again. I had found cute little bracelets for my granddaughter's birthday present, and I wanted to explore one more store, Casa della Lana. I had googled Bologna yarn stores, and found a blog post describing this store, which was not far from our hotel.

We started in that direction, recalculating directions, and suddenly found a delightful small gallery, Crete, where I bought a piece of lampwork bead earrings from the island of Murano, and a fabulous inexpensive necklace made of a black polyester mesh with faux pearls floating inside. #happyJan We continued on towards the yarn store, and stopped at a lovely restaurant with a covered patio where we filled up and cooled down. After this rest, we walked another block to the yarn store.

I realized I had seen the yarn store on our introductory walk the evening before, but didn't recognize it as a yarn store because the window was filled mostly with clothing. When we walked in, I saw shelves filled with beautiful yarns, all organized by color. (If you're not a yarn person, you wouldn't know that in the States yarns are usually sorted by manufacturer. That way if you find a yarn texture or weight you like, you can then choose the color you want to knit with.) But I also saw racks of fabulous reasonably-priced easily-wearable jersey dresses, tops and slacks. Oh, to have had an unlimited budget in this store! The two ladies out front called another clerk from the back, who spoke enough English to help me. She was darling—helped me find Italian yarns I wouldn't see in the States, and even showed me how to cast on this unique yarn. Then she pulled it off the needle and urged me to cast on while she watched. "Bella!," she said, encouragingly. What a perfect shopgirl!!

Now almost back to the hotel, we spied some sort of public demonstration with young people painting on banners, and the Jazzman, with his love of politics and unions, just had to stop and see what was going on. (See, all our interests were satisfied on this trip!)

Back to the hotel, a few minutes to clean up, then gather in the lobby while waiting for the others to return from their afternoon wine tasting so we could go to that night's dinner.

The tour-included dinner that night was at Trattoria Anna Maria. We were told her lasagna was, simply, the best. And it was! Honestly, if I could find (or make) lasagna noodles that thin and tender, I'd make lasagna every other day.

The restaurant itself was classic, with walls filled with photos of every famous person who had ever eaten there. The waitstaff was delightful. And we were all elated and laughing, yet one more fabulous Italian meal.

At the end of the meal, Anna Maria herself came out of the kitchen to greet us, and even did a little dance for us, after our tour director told us what a fabulous dancer she is.

Reluctantly, we left Anna Maria and walked back to the hotel through streets jam-packed with locals, enjoying the warm evening and good friends. (The picture on the left was snapped as we walked down one of the streets near the university at about 10:00 on a Friday night.)

 

Tomorrow: An Adventure and a Sticky Door