On the 18th of April, I left Stockholm for the first longer trip of the year. My aim was to visit four countries in about two weeks: starting in Sweden and ending up in Romania for a short stay during Easter. This post shares impressions from the first stop: Bologna.

After visiting Italy twice before (Rome: December ’18 and Milano: February ’19), this time around I checked off three new cities in this fantastic country: Bologna, Venice, and Trieste. Being in the Northeastern part of Italy I took the chance to visit San Marino too. I will write about all of these trips in the coming posts. But now: Bologna.

I arrived in Bologna in the evening of the 18th of April. It took about four hours to reach it, including here the transfer in Copenhagen. SAS made the trip really smooth, but I was lucky enough to travel just before their strike began.

The first welcome sign at the airport lets you know that you arrived in Emilia-Reggiana, the home of parmegiano reggiano. With such a statement, you are reminded very quickly that Italy is all about food.

Bologna is just a lovely city with a special feeling to it. Coming from the airport straight to the center, you instantly see everywhere the famous Bolognese portici. Would be even hard to miss them, being stretched for almost 40km through the city. With such a length, their design changes as you switch areas. So make sure to look up for seeing these architectural beauties.

More than anything, I recommend taking a walk through the city just before dusk. Besides catching the golden hour, which puts the red city in an even more special light, you’ll get to experience the unique buzz of the Italian streets: lively discussions over spritz and antipasto, fresh seafood sold in the corner, colorful flowers offered across the road, prosciutto on display in the nearby window. Truly fantastic!

Make sure to include in your route a stop in the Piazza Maggiore, where you can also have a look inside the Basilica di San Petronio, one of the distinguishable churches of Bologna, displaying an intriguing facade. Worth mentioning here is also the Cattedrale Metropolitana di San Pietro. I entered it just before closing time and the lights were mostly switched off, giving the very large interior an unreal sense.

Do not leave Bologna without checking out its Two Towers. Maybe the most recognizable Bolognese symbols, the structures measure 97.20 meters (Asinelli) respectively 47 meters (Garisenda). The lower one is leaning towards the taller tower, reminding of another Italian symbol.

Also in Bologna, Trattoria del Rosso offered me the best pasta I ever had, their Tagliatelle al Ragù. This was the postcard Italian dinner sought by all the tourists. I would gladly come back to this city even if it would be only for this place.

Talking about next times, when I will be back to Bologna, maybe on my way to Modena and Parma, I hope I’ll get to see Bologna F.C. 1909 playing on their iconic Renato Dall’Ara Stadium. And I’ll make sure to book a visit to the top of Asinelli, to check out the rooftops which make Bologna La rossa.