55 Bologna
For me to go to Italy involves a lot of time and money. So my goal is both a learning experience and a holiday. What a school offers in terms of extra-curricular activities forms part of my vacation, as does the city I choose. I chose Bologna because of its reputation as a University City, its cuisine, and its geographical location.
Bologna is certainly a beautiful city, famous for its arches or porticoes that are omnipresent. In fact, you don’t need to bring an umbrella. I used mine once, after which I decided it was a waste of time. Bologna is also known as the red city, both because of its red sandstone and its left-leaning politics. I don’t know how “left” the city really is these days, and I suspect that its political inclination owes a lot to the fact that it has a large body of university students. As a cynic might say, students can afford to vote left, until they graduate and find their first job. Whatever its political stripe, Bologna has a lot of very expensive stores, so there must be a lot of rich people about, and the city even has an office for the Lega Nord, the right-wing, separatist party.
Perhaps because of its left-of centre ambience, the city has an enlightened approach to its museums and galleries. Nearly all are free, and there are many galleries – so many that I didn’t get to visit all of them. Of course, this being Italy, not all are opened all the time. So if you go, get the latest schedule and it may help. I tried several times to visit the Museum of the Resistance, but even when the brochure stated that it would be open, it was closed.
The city is also rich in music with many free concerts. My musical highlight was the finals of a singing competition for future opera stars. The Music Conservatory also sponsors free concerts by their students. Many of these student musicians will be the future professionals, and I for one, will look forward to following the career of the cellist I heard at a recital.
Bologna was, historically, the Pope’s second city, and unfortunately, Bologna is like Rome in its worse aspects. Cars are everywhere, even in the centre, and they drive on their horn, and you play “dodge’m” with them. [Actually, Rome closes the centre to cars on a Sunday.] By my third week I had a dry cough caused by the pollution in the air. Unfortunately, pollution comes in several forms: foul air from the cars, noise from the cars, and dog shit on the streets. To feel the difference, take a trip to Ferrara or Parma. The people of Ferrara have embraced the environmental culture and bicycles are the order of the day. The air is fresh and tranquillity pervades the city. And in Parma -- unlike Bologna where you cross when you can -- the pedestrians actually wait at the stoplights!
I found the people of Bologna very friendly and polite. Don’t be afraid of the evening crowds that gather outside a bar or at Piazza Verdi, the university centre. I found everyone polite and considerate whenever I had to walk through the crowd. Striking up a conversation is not difficult. Of course, many, especially the younger ones, will want to try out their English as soon as they suspect that you are English speaking. Waiters will nearly always try to speak English to you, but if you look hard enough, some restaurants and waiters still respect their own language. But, and this is a big but, I found many restaurants, especially those run by Sicilians downright crooked, and in my next blog I will go into detail on the several bad experiences I had.
Bologna is certainly a beautiful city, famous for its arches or porticoes that are omnipresent. In fact, you don’t need to bring an umbrella. I used mine once, after which I decided it was a waste of time. Bologna is also known as the red city, both because of its red sandstone and its left-leaning politics. I don’t know how “left” the city really is these days, and I suspect that its political inclination owes a lot to the fact that it has a large body of university students. As a cynic might say, students can afford to vote left, until they graduate and find their first job. Whatever its political stripe, Bologna has a lot of very expensive stores, so there must be a lot of rich people about, and the city even has an office for the Lega Nord, the right-wing, separatist party.
Perhaps because of its left-of centre ambience, the city has an enlightened approach to its museums and galleries. Nearly all are free, and there are many galleries – so many that I didn’t get to visit all of them. Of course, this being Italy, not all are opened all the time. So if you go, get the latest schedule and it may help. I tried several times to visit the Museum of the Resistance, but even when the brochure stated that it would be open, it was closed.
The city is also rich in music with many free concerts. My musical highlight was the finals of a singing competition for future opera stars. The Music Conservatory also sponsors free concerts by their students. Many of these student musicians will be the future professionals, and I for one, will look forward to following the career of the cellist I heard at a recital.
Bologna was, historically, the Pope’s second city, and unfortunately, Bologna is like Rome in its worse aspects. Cars are everywhere, even in the centre, and they drive on their horn, and you play “dodge’m” with them. [Actually, Rome closes the centre to cars on a Sunday.] By my third week I had a dry cough caused by the pollution in the air. Unfortunately, pollution comes in several forms: foul air from the cars, noise from the cars, and dog shit on the streets. To feel the difference, take a trip to Ferrara or Parma. The people of Ferrara have embraced the environmental culture and bicycles are the order of the day. The air is fresh and tranquillity pervades the city. And in Parma -- unlike Bologna where you cross when you can -- the pedestrians actually wait at the stoplights!
I found the people of Bologna very friendly and polite. Don’t be afraid of the evening crowds that gather outside a bar or at Piazza Verdi, the university centre. I found everyone polite and considerate whenever I had to walk through the crowd. Striking up a conversation is not difficult. Of course, many, especially the younger ones, will want to try out their English as soon as they suspect that you are English speaking. Waiters will nearly always try to speak English to you, but if you look hard enough, some restaurants and waiters still respect their own language. But, and this is a big but, I found many restaurants, especially those run by Sicilians downright crooked, and in my next blog I will go into detail on the several bad experiences I had.
posted by Toby1939 at 5:35 PM
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