Our normal breakfast placed is closed on Mondays, so we had a voucher for a nearby place: Italian BreakPast. It’s primarily a pasta place, but they serve coffee and pastries in the morning. Our cappuccini and pastries were delicious! Archiginnasio of Bologna After breakfast we headed to the Archiginnasio of Bologna, which was once the main building of the...
We took an early train to Verona, which is just under an hour north of Bologna by train. We were blown away by Verona! It’s such a charming city, with a rushing river providing a soothing background noise in many parts of the old town. Verona is second only to Rome in the number of visible ruins from the 1st century BC to the 4th century AD. It even has a Roman...
Basilica Sanctuary of Santo Stefano – Complex of the Seven Churches Another full day in Bologna. We got an early start. After coffee and pastries at Pasticceria Santo Stefano, we explored the Basilica Santuario Santo Stefano – Complesso delle Sette Chiese (Basilica Sanctuary of Santo Stefano – Complex of the Seven Churches), a cluster of chapels...
A day full of Christmas shopping, sightseeing, and food! Our second full day of the trip, but our first devoted entirely to Bologna. We began by exploring the areas around our B&B. We were right in the heart of the old city, so it wasn’t hard finding fun things to check out! We admired the architecture, visited many shops, checked out a couple different...
Dinner on Thanksgiving night in Modena was the highlight of the trip. So much so, that I had to sleep on it and collect my thoughts before writing in my journal. First, a tiny bit of background: Since opening in 1995 by Massimo Bottura and his wife/partner Lara, Osteria Francescana has twice been named Best Restaurant in the World (it’s also been named second...
Back home, this would be Thanksgiving day. We celebrated in grand style, but more on our amazing dinner in a bit. First, we were up early to enjoy coffee and pastries at Pasticceria Santo Stefano, across the street from our B&B. Our rental included vouchers for coffee and pastries every day – just hand the voucher to the server and we’re all set! It...
We arrived in Bologna in the evening, took a train from the airport to the Bologna Centrale train station, then walked about 20 minutes to our B&B, Casa Isolani Santo Stefano. Our room, the Santo Stefano room, overlooked Piazza Santo Stefano, also known as the square of the Seven Churches. The room had a private bathroom, and there’s a shared room in the...