After our less than memorable experience in Genoa, we headed east to go across to Bologna . Weather is a bit weird. Temp has dropped down to about 4C. Pea soup fog all the way across northern Italy, no rain or wind though. Perfect weather for hurtling along the freeway at 130+.
Not too sure what we expected in Bologna. Were we swapping one big city madness for another? Both cities ware of a similar size - roughly half a million people crammed into an area smaller than Townsville or Cairns.
We needn't have worried though. Bologna is a much different city to Genoa. Its road system is much more organised. It's public transport system is more efficient. People are not in as much of a rush. And, as with all Italian historic cities, it is awash with history and culture.
We were still a bit jet-lagged from our visit to Genoa when we arrived in Bologna late Saturday afternoon. So after checking into the hotel we grabbed a bite to eat at a local cafe and then retired to our room for a bit of R&R for the rest of the day. Tomorrow we'll go exploring.
Bologna really is a beautiful city. Like we have done on most of this trip, we didn't bother with any museum visits (and there are plenty of them). Being Sunday they were closed anyway. There was plenty to see just by wandering the streets and taking a short tourist train ride around the old part of the town. A most relaxing way to see it all.
Went back into the city that night for supper. Google maps pointed out the locations of a few restaurants not too far from where our bus from the hotel stops. A few of them looked promising. After a few false starts (didn't have a booking for some) we found just the place. Nestled in a side street it had all the hallmarks of a typical Italian restaurant - glazed windows, 19th century furniture, waiters wearing floor length black aprons, and filled with what seemed like a thousand people. Not sure if we could get a table but went in anyway. No problem said the guy on the door (at least that's what I think he said) as he handed us off to another waiter who led us through a maze of rooms to a table.
The place was full and buzzing. Soon we were seated, made feel welcome, orders taken, drinks provided. All that was required now was to sit back and enjoy the show. And by show, I mean the restaurant itself. If you ever want to see how a restaurant should be run then come over here and go to a family run place. It's a real education. No sooner had people finished their meal and left, the table was cleared and reset ready for the next customer. While we were there we must have seen at least 5 tables turned over 2 or 3 times. But that is not to say that they rush you out the door. There's no pressure to eat and leave. Its just that when people do leave things happen to make sure someone else can have a table. It's like clockwork. The French may have the cuisine down pat, but they can't touch the Italians for service.
So Bologna. Excellent. Just what we needed to restore our fondness for this part of the world.