In April, Bunny sowed hundreds of radish seeds in her garden and had a total produce of 4. Great. All May was gone looking at these four radishes grow and the rest of them die/ turn into ugly woody shrubs (yikes). Bunny was itching to pop.
Two of the four marvels. Bunny doesn’t have green paws. No.
Last Wednesday, some bunnies figured Monday was a bank holiday, and how they leaped in joy! By Friday the destination was decided, and on Saturday we were off to Bologna!
Bologna is like a neglected sibling of Florence, some 150 km away from it, but super pretty itself and way less touristic.
According to Wiki, Bologna’s history dates back to 1000 B.C., inhabited by the Etruscans before and then the Romans.
One of the 12 doors to Bologna
A close up of the chalk stone used by Romans in their buildings. A delight for geologists, historians, and artists alike.
The romans had built the city in their characteristic rectangular grids but current Bologna is a myriad of little streets coming out as spokes of a wheel from the main tower of Bologna, bordered by infinite corridors of arches made with red stone. Despite half of the city being bombed during World War II, the color scheme of the city is still maintained in a beautiful combo of red, orange, and yellow.
Arch after arch after arch bunnies go pop
Walking through Bologna is like walking through a painting though a lot of it is now covered in graffiti without any message.
This graffiti, however, does have a message. It says “jerks”. This was on a bridge on one of the (still) open canals of Bologna. Wrong bridge guys!
Network of canals made by redirecting the river Po, from which supplies were brought in the city. Most canals are covered now.
One of the few open canals. Imagine this scene multiplied throughout the city back in time.
After laughing at the people who put locks on the bridge above, we meandered through the streets of Bologna to reach the University, which btw is the oldest university of the world (Nope, not Padua).
A corridor of the Uni
At the theatre of anatomy in the Uni. Here bodies were cut open (to study anatomy) but interestingly, all these demonstrations were presided over by a priest who made sure the doctor did not damage the soul of the body.:)) Two sculptures of men without skin still look over the anatomy table. So detailed! so cool!
Next to the anatomical theatre is the library of the University full of ancient books, some dating from the pre-printing press era.
This library had a beautiful smell of old books.
The money for the university came from the rich families in and around Bologna and also the church, who had a big influence on Bologna. And hence, Bologna is also full of churches. For example this one has seven churches within itself.
An inception of churches.
A hidden beauty in the streets of Bologna.
Church of St. Dominic. Look how the angels are holding the chandeliers. This church has some sculptures from famous artists like Michelangelo and Lombardi.
The funding for the completion of this church was cut off because it threatened to surpass the grandeur of Vatican (I overheard an American saying this. They are kinda difficult to ignore).
The breathtaking view from top of the tower of this church. Look crooked the towers are. Our local guide (who happened to be my lab bunny in 2014) told us that apparently there were many more towers and Bologna was like Manhanttan of the past.
After this extensive tour, we went to his place out in the countryside, which was 10 degrees cooler than the city and so so so pretty.
Lab bunny’s place is surrounded by forests full of hare (yay) and wolves (boo).
I did not see any hare so I made friends with her instead.
After a painful goodbye to my new friend and lab bunny’s place, we headed back to the city and heard more local legends such as the one about this arrow stuck in the ceiling.
A female fugitive was hiding in that building, but when she got finally surrounded by the police, she came to the window and showed them a body part (hint below) and the arrows of the police went straight into the ceiling. Hah.
Another legend goes that at this little square in the royal palace, lepers could confess talking into one of the four corners and the priest could clearly hear them from the diagonally opposite corner. So cool!
The communication tunnel actually works! Here is a woman talking into the wall to her friend standing next to me (also facing the wall).
Then we ate at this touristic yet great place.
And guess what we ate-
A beautiful bowl of tagliatelle al ragu (you will not find pasta bolognese in Bologna;))
This ravioli filled with ragu is also a bolognese speciality.
Four carrots to the pasta!
Bologna is also full of open spaces and outdoor cafes which serve cheap drinks and food and a happy atmosphere.
Next morning, we went for a private tour to see the emblem of Bologna, the statue of Neptune which has been under almost constant restoration since 3 centuries because it keeps cracking.
50 shades of green
I wouldn’t recommend this tour if you don’t want to see these women squirting water (bottom left and right). Rather see the replica of this statue in Palo Alto (with a wine leaf. Such prudes).
Finally after a trip through the food street, lunch at and to the best gelateria (Il Gelatauro) in town, bunnies popped back to Zurich. Sigh.
A shop in the food street
No carrots? 😢
As a final note, B is a place where you still see old people shopping fresh vegetables and locals eating in restaurants, where modern life is existing amicably with layers and layers of the past, beautifully interlacing itself with the Roman, Middle Ages, renaissance and the fascists era.
A random house in Bologna with yellow walls, some arches, and a pretty courtyard.
All trains from northern Italy to central Italy go via Bologna, hop off if you can, go to the top of one of the towers and have some pasta. Carpe diem.
Four carrots to you, Bologna!
A big thank you to Marco, the lab bunny for all the stories!
bunnygoespoppoppop 