Bologna: a place in Italy that you may not know
right in the heart of bologna , in a huge open square in front of the church of San Petronio, stands one of the craziest baroque pieces you've ever seen . It is a statue of Neptune in pyramidal shape. At the top is the ancient god of the sea, naked, with a voluminous Marxist beard . He has one hand outstretched, as if stroking the head of an invisible dog, and at his feet crouch four plump cherubs, each clutching a fish like a guitar. Beneath they rest four unattractive mermaids , so hunched that their chins rest on their collarbones. Jets of water spray shoot out from her breasts in an unpredictable arc.
As art it is so bad that it is good , and all the more strange for being the symbol of a place that is as far from the sea, inland, as an Italian city can be. But the people of Bologna adore this statue: It is a meeting place for lovers , and it's where the happy students of the old university come to pop the bottle of prosecco, the Italian cava, on their graduation day. I like it too : Neptune is just one of many happy and memorable things about this little explored city.
Bologna is known in Italy as 'La Rossa' for its left-wing politics, its terracotta roofs and its scarlet-painted shutters. This red coloration of the city is best seen from the top of one of the 12th-century towers that dot the skyline like industrial chimneys. Nine centuries ago there were more than a hundred and they made Bologna a pioneer city in skyscrapers of the time, a 'medieval Manhattan', In the words of a historian. Now they just stand around 20 of these giants , and only a couple of them can be visited. One is the asinelli tower, which is located next to his younger sister, the Garisenda tower. Together they are another symbol of the city. A third accessible tower is the 13-story Prendiparte, converted into a bed and breakfast of a single bedroom. It is one of the most authentic and romantic places to stay in Italy.
The curious Neptune of Bologna
The spaces in which people live in the turn you on they stack on top of each other. Stairs lead from the entrance hall to the living room, to the bedroom, then to the kitchen and then to the dining room. Above the cozy accommodation, with its sideboards and tables from the beginning of the 20th century, there are nine more floors, all of them empty, where there is an impractical and very steep rickety wooden staircase. So the view from the terrace is gained based on sweat to go up and vertigo to go down..
But the mesmerizing view is worth the trip. It is the best place to watch the sunset. All of Bologna is at your feet: the steep line of corrugated roofs; people of minuscule size, mostly discernible by the lines drawn by their shadows; squares with checkerboard floors and parks with planters; Solitary basilica of the Madonna di San Luca, protector of Bologna, on her sacred hill, beyond the city walls. I thought I wouldn't want to do this dreaded climb more than once. But I found myself climbing to the roof every day, sometimes twice, because I just couldn't get enough of this view.
Bologna is just as remarkable at street level. In the center of the city there are long stretches of road covered by galleries, a consequence of the medieval urban planning of a part of the city whereby the buildings extended from the first floor and the overhang was supported by columns. All this makes the city look stately and protected. And that when sitting on the terrace of a café or a bar, one can always manage to protect oneself from the inclement summer sun or from a sudden autumn shower.
But you have to go inside to appreciate the best of the city . One of the reasons why Bologna doesn't receive more visitors is because it is too modest in terms of incredible places that hide behind their beautiful facades . A good example is the room of the anatomical theater of the Archiginnasium, the old headquarters of the university. This beautiful, 500-year-old, wood-panelled hall is a monument to Enlightenment thought, a temple of science. Here, watched intently by vomiting medical students, early modern anatomists made some of the pioneering explorations of what lies beneath the surface of the human body. For reasons of hygiene they worked only during the cold winter months, and each dissection was a non-stop 48-hour marathon for both the teachers and the audience. The most striking things in this impressive space are the spelati , two wood carvings of two skinned men showing the subcutaneous musculature in detail. The room is open to the public, and it is as unforgettable, in its secular form, as the Sistine Chapel.
medieval manhattan
Bologna is full of shady treasures. In the depths of Palazzo Poggi, Part of the university, there is a science museum filled with curiosities such as model ships, stuffed crocodiles, wax hearts and livers. In another part of town, and at the other end of the belief spectrum, is the striking shrine of Saint Catherine of Bologna, whose incorruptible remains, clad in a nun's habit, sit for eternity on a golden throne in the convent where she served as abbess.
More visible, but easy to miss since it's just a short walk from the center, is MAMbo , Bologna's museum of modern art. It's worth seeking out, if only for the upside-down world map upholstered in leather like an upside-down cartographic headboard. Stay for the MAMbo until the last minute to coincide with the aperitif: at the bar they prepare one of the best stuzzichini in the city – a wide selection of canapés and tapas that are served in all the bars to accompany pre-dinner cocktails. This custom is something new in this part of Italy – it is something more typical of Milan – and it is another of the surprises of the city.
But of all the hidden pleasures of Bologna, my favorite is a work of art hidden in the back of the church of Santa Maria della Vita . Here is an amazing set of 15th-century life-size terracotta figures depicting the friends of Jesus Christ around the body of him about to be buried. Each figure is frozen in a moment of excruciating pain. Doubled over in her agony, the mother of Christ looks as if she's been punched in the solar plexus. Mary Magdalene, with a silent cry on her face, runs towards the corpse of Jesus and seems about to throw herself on him. Saint John of the Cross, strangely comic, theatrically rests her chin on one of her hands. As a whole, the scene is full of emotional truth. He dissects the human psyche exactly as anatomy theater did with the human body. and what Bologna now does with the people who visit it: it gets under the skin.
The Museum of Modern Art in Bologna
WHERE TO SLEEP
TOWER PRENDIPARTE. Only for two people, it has neither television nor wifi, as a good romantic refuge . When you arrive you will find the oak table set for breakfast the next morning and the fridge well stocked, also with wine. Help yourself (Piazzetta Prendiparte, 5; HD: from €280).
THE CONVENT OF THE FIORI OF THE SETA. The Convento de las Flores de Seda is a small and charming boutique hotel located in a quiet corner in the south of the city, a short walk from the center. It functioned as a convent until recently and still retains that atmosphere of silence. Rooms are minimalist, but the breakfast room, in what was once the nuns' chapel, has a star-festooned ceiling and a painted Christ in the highest niche (Via Orfeo 34/4; HD: around €117).
GRAND HOTEL MAJESTIC. Bologna's only five-star hotel is unashamedly traditional. The entrance is presided over by uniformed doormen and there are gigantic ostentatious sofas on every landing. The hotel is proud of the place's dazzling history: Ava Gardner and Frank Sinatra stayed here, just like Paul McCartney and Lady Di (Via Indipendenza, 8; HD: from €315).
Playing cards at Osteria del Sole
WHERE TO EAT
In Bologna you will not find spaghetti bolognese anywhere. The meat sauce they call ragout It has little or no tomato and is always served with tagliatelle, never with spaghetti.
PAPPAGALLO. A good place to try the traditional cuisine of Bologna and Emilia-Romagna. Its name means 'carrot' and it is an institution that has been highly appreciated by the Bolognese since the 1950s. They prepare tortellini in brodo like no one else, but better than don't order the five-course tasting menu unless you're a real pasta freak (Piazza della Mercanzia, 3; two people, around €130).
OSTERY OF THE SOLE. It's a 550 year old restaurant where no food is served . Buy your picnic at a market next door and take it to this bar, where you'll be served sparkling wine and a bread knife. It's a fantastic place - Buffalo Bill spent a big night here, they say, in 1904 – And, we don't know how, he seems to have circumvented the current anti-smoking laws (Vicolo Ranocchi 1 / d; tel. +347 968 0171; about €5 per person plus wine).
ALL'OSTERIA BOTTEGA . This unassuming, unassuming place is almost impossible to find if you don't get a ride because it's at the end of an unpromising street, close to the city walls. But it's probably the best, and homeliest, restaurant I've ever eaten in Italy. Start with the bologna, served with a ripe pear and prosecco, then take your pick. Fried potatoes are unmatched (V_ia Santa Caterina, 51_).
Aubergines and Stuffed Pasta at Via Con Me
WHERE TO HAVE A DRINK
LE STANZE. A trendy spot in the former private chapel of the Bentivoglio family. The faded saints on the walls look with mild disapproval at the serene Buddha reclining at the bar. The place fills up at night but it is perfect to have a quiet coffee escaping from the heat of the afternoon (Via Borgo di San Pietro, 1).
CAMERA TO SOUTH . A charming shabby bar in the heart of the old Jewish quarter. Have a wine or a dark beer and flip through paperbacks and political literature. If those young people on the corner look like they're plotting a revolution, it's probably because they are (Via Valdonica, 5) .
MERCHANDISE LOUNGE BAR . A small bar full of people that overflows to the street. Its free buffet is possibly the best in the city center. Once, the poet Dante Alighieri stood nearby, waiting for the beautiful women who passed by. Seven hundred years later, not much has changed _(Piazza della Mercanzia 2/a) _.
*** You may also be interested in...**
- The other Bologna plan
- The oldest (and funniest) university cities in Europe
- Florence, for the love of art
- Venice Guide
- The Decalogue of the Italian Aperitif
A drink at the Mercanzie Lounge
One of the arcaded streets of Bologna