On the Road Again

“On the road again.  Goin’ places that I’ve never been
Seein’ things that I may never see again and I can’t wait to get on the road again.”

“On the Road Again” – Willie Nelson

We spent a lot of time on the road today.  Because this morning, after Jeremy’s final Tuscan bike ride (he ended up climbing close to 15,000 feet on his bike through the mountains while we were here) we packed up our belongings and left Tuscany.  For the record, Jeremy was amazing, driving through Italy.  I could have and would have never been able to do what he did and am so proud of him.

Our final destination of the day was Milan, but we ended up doing an afternoon detour to Bologna.  We had read about this incredible city online and we were excited it was on the way.  Getting to it did require a bit of tricky navigation since we weren’t allowed to drive our car in the main city section, but through a little research we found a good parking garage and Jeremy parallel parked our tiny car into this spot like a pro.

Once we made our way into the city center part of Bologna we were delighted with what we saw.  Throughout the entire city, there was this unique blend of old, older and new and it made for a very fun sightseeing experience.

This fountain was incredible, and there were little bits of sculpture and art like this all throughout the city.

Someday I will do a study and research the reasons behind all of these awesome, but tragic statues.

We made our way to one of the highlights of Bologna, the Basilica di San Petronio, a medieval catholic church that was filled with 22 different and beautiful side chapels.  It was absolutely stunning inside, though unfortunately pictures were not allowed.

We ended up wandering throughout a few other amazing churches including this one, where pictures were allowed.  Visiting beautiful churches is one of my favorite things to do when we travel to Europe and Bologna did not disappoint.

In between church visits, we wandered through Bologna’s streets which were filled with shops and restaurants to fit any and every need.

Had I had room and refrigeration in my luggage, I would have gladly taken home some parmigiano cheese from this shop.

While we didn’t stop to enjoy a full meal today, we did get our fill of sweet treats and cappuccinos.  And that was just as enjoyable as well.

Sadly, we did not take any bologna home from Bologna.  Seeing it did bring back fond memories of my elementary school lunches though.  And my guess is that this bologna probably tasted much better.

Towards the end of our time, we did walk by the Garisenda Tower, which is quiety famous because it too has quite a lean to it.  I researched a bit and learned that it’s actually more leaning than the famous tower of Pisa (it’s at 4 degrees vs Pisa’s 3.97) so there’s your Bologna fun fact of the night.

And after a good five or so hours in Bologna, we got back on the road again and safely arrived in Milan where we are staying at a hotel for the night.  Tomorrow, we start a new adventure to someplace we’ve never been so more on that to come.  But for tonight, it’s good to be off the road and getting a full night of rest.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone tomorrow!  The timing of this trip happened to mean that we would miss that delicious holiday, but for the most part we were okay with it.  We know our kids are in good hands with Nana and Papa and we plan on enjoying tomorrow and the next few days finishing up our time in Europe.  That being said, I do wish you a wonderful day filled with food and family and lots of reflection on the many blessings we have to give thanks for.