Emilia-Romagna — My Travel Stories

Ravenna, Italy

Ravenna, Italy April, 2022 Ravishing Ravenna This little gem has among the most remarkable Byzantine mosaics imaginable. Monreale in Sicily was incredible and Ravenna is equally amazing and dare I say maybe more so. Eight UNESCO world heritage sites in a pretty small town is quite an accomplishment and these places are unbelievably well-preserved. The Battistero Neomiano, is the oldest monument in Ravenna dating back to the late 4th or or early 5th century.

Bologna, Italy

Bologna, Italy May, 2025 Bring on Bologna I said it the first time we visited Bologna, and it took two years to come to fruition, but I am back in Bologna to learn Italian! We had to get a Fist-Day-of-School photo! Who sets to go to a school in a historic building with statues adorning the staircase? We do! We spent three glorious weeks at Academya Lingua and I can’t wait to go back! What a way to learn!

Bologna Road Trip #1

All work and no play…well, there was a lot of play mixed in with the work. Call it working play, as we had to practice our Italian skills as we road tripped around!

Bologna Road Trip #2

Our second road trip from Bologna took us up north to Piemonte for some wine tasting. As always, there were surprises along the way!

San Giovanni in Persiceto

Our first road trip from Bologna took us to little gems around the Emilia-Romanga region, starting in San Giovanni in Persiceto.

Dozza

Our second stop in our first Bologna road trip was Dozza, a beautiful hilltop village just outside Bologna. Its claim to fame is murals that decorate the houses and shops of the two streets that make up the village. It was a much needed revitalization of a dwindling medieval village.

Castel del Rio

As part of our first Bologna road trip, we discovered the quiet village of Castel del Rio which is firmly off the beaten track in Emilia-Romagna but punches well above its weight when it comes to bridges! The steep, Ponte degli Alidosi, its major landmark, is one of the Renaissance's most distinctive bridges. Certainly too big for the needs of its mere 1,300 residents today but it had important financial and political muscle in its day.

Cervia

We capped off our first Bologna road trip with a bit of beach time in Cervia, where the Bolognese flock with the weather warms up.

Parma

We kicked off our second Bologna road trip with a stop in Parma. Aside from its claim to fame as the home of a certain cheese and ham, there is plenty to explore here!