February 16-17: Bologna

Once I left Venice, I spent a couple days in Bologna, since my professor had recommended it and there was a site in a small town nearby that I wanted to see. I didn't really know what to expect, since I hadn't heard much about the place; I'd been there briefly and had lunch at a cafe near the station once, since I had changed trains there a few times, but I'd never seen the historical center or really heard much about it at all.

So, it was a shock.



Bologna is BEAUTIFUL.



The historical center is a medieval maze of beautiful old palaces, fortresses, churches, and towers. The ubiquitous use of red brick and terracotta roofing gives Bologna the nickname La Rossa; the name takes on a double meaning given the city's post-WWII connections with communism. Even today, it has a comprehensive network of social services, and entrance to most of its museums is completely free.



There is just nothing, nothing like walking down a perfectly ordinary city street, turning a corner, and finding yourself face-to-face with this.



Bologna's famous Two Towers, dating to medieval times when the city once contained as many as 180 such structures, are one of the most famous symbols of the city, mentioned by Dante and other authors of the time.



And yes - if you think they look slightly askew, it's not just sloppy perspective. The Two Towers, like another famous Italian landmark, both are leaning slightly.



The University of Bologna is the oldest university in the world and has been operating continually since its foundation in 1088. It is also the first use of the word "university," derived from the Latin universitas and meaning "aggregate" or "community" in the context of a community of scholars. Today, more than 100,000 students attend every year, and the historical center is full of bars and chic cafes that cater to the younger generation.

Bologna has dozens of prominent museums, many associated with the university: art, music, archaeology, history, science, medicine, and still others.

I could have spent a week in Bologna and still not have been satisfied, but unfortunately I only had a couple of days there and I had to blitz through the museums and interesting sights, hence the lack of in-depth reporting today. So much history, and so little time! I did eat some beautiful meals, though (the food in Bologna is said to be among the best in Italy).



(And now I'm craving buffalo milk mozzarella...)

Next up: my trip to a very special museum, and a subject that is quite dear to my heart.

February 15: San Marco

Well, then! I'm so sorry for the lack of updates. There are still plenty of photos, rest assured, and I will post them. I just came down with a really nasty cold on Monday and between that and starting work again next week, I've been pretty busy.

On my last full day in Venice, it was foggy yet again; I had put off the belltower and San Marco because I wanted a good view, but I wasn't going to leave Venice without climbing it, the weather be damned. So, I took a vaporetto to the piazza and ducked into the basilica while I waited for the campanile to open.



To backtrack—you're probably familiar with St. Mark's Square, as it is one of the largest and most famous piazze in Italy. Wide open (if usually tourist-choked) spaces, absurdly expensive cafés, flocks of pigeons and gulls, vendors selling roses, photographs, t-shirts and souvenirs; it is bordered by the wings of the ducal palace and the ancient administrative buildings, now converted into museums and offices, but the centerpiece is the gilded Basilica di San Marco. Construction of this cathedral began a cool millennium ago and it was completed in the early 17th century. It is a prime example of the Byzantine architectural style, corresponding to the period of Greek rule over what was once the Western Roman Empire; the building exhibits characteristically Byzantine traits such as use of the Greek cross as the floor plan (rather than the Latin cross of later structures), mosaic decoration, and lots and lots of domes.





Having climbed a Duomo or two in my day, I felt a little resentful of the fact that they didn't let me take the stairs to the top of the bell tower of San Marco, but I guess I will give them the benefit of the doubt and assume that there was a really good reason that we all had to take the elevator.

Looking down on the cathedral:



Piazza San Marco between the wings of the palaces (now the Museo Correr):



Looking south towards Giudecca and San Giorgio Maggiore:



I still love how everything just disappears into the fog.

Up next: Bologna!