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Update on day to day life in Bologna

A quick update of a fairly routine life in Bologna.

My feet are slowly recovering from being perpetually lost in Venice. My feet are the most vital part of my anatomy in this world of walking everywhere so I become obsessed with them.

Tonight I am going on a walk of Bologna with the school to look at the Towers of Bologna…there used to be hundred of them, a symbol of power, but most were pulled down for exactly that reason i.e. to remove the symbols of power. Anyway the school puts something on most nights and although I don’t go every time I do go ‘qualche volta’. Madeleine is coming to my ‘palazzo’ before the walk for an aperitif and some cake. She leaves tomorrow and I will miss my young friend very much. Unfortunately it is raining now and walking around Bologna in the wet is a treacherous exercise as Rosa will attest. I spend my life concentrating on not slipping. The surfaces are glassy and incredibly slippery, something the Bolognese seem to cope with with aplomb.

But before this I must do my homework. Today we have to describe our favourite shop in some detail. I have exacerbated my reputation as a complete dickhead by standing outside Franco and Bruno’s Salumeria writing down the names of the things they sell. Fortunately Franco e Bruno are very lovely and have taken on my education as their mission, intent on making me communicate in Italian and not laughing at me…at least out loud. They probably have hilarious lunch breaks!! That and my daily cappuccino bar are definitely my favourites and they are both extremely patient with me.

As you have seen Bologna is now lighting up for Christmas…it’s a bit by bit process which is nice that it isn’t all Christmassy 2 months before Christmas. Apparently the giant tower is lighting up this weekend (at least that’s what I think I read in the newspaper that I gaze at while I take my morning coffee.

My world is going to change next week when my Italian classes rejig. As I have said delete Madeleine and add a Chinese boy to join Hyun (the non-communicative Korean boy) and I for grammar class. Then I have to join the main conversation class where everyone speaks Italian and where I will stand out like a sore thumb as the dumbest (except maybe Hyun). Oh shit!! I keep thinking how bad can it be for 2 weeks when with huge relief I go to London to forget Italian for 3 weeks or so. It is my light on the horizon. Having said that I have been really enjoying the Italian classes for this last 2 weeks. It has been fun and not so stressful really. It has given me routine and purpose and a sense (from time to time) of achievement.

I have 2 main purposes in life…the dentist and Italian classes. Funnily enough the only 2 things I have to do clash all the time mainly because the times for both the classes and the dentist keep changing. It is a nightmare and I have the entire Italian school trying to rejig classes to fit me in on Monday next week!!

The weekend approaches. I think this weekend the main piazzas and the Torre (tower) are going to light up so I will be out and about joining the Bolognese in their passegiata’s. On Saturday night Giancarlo and Fabrizia have invited me for dinner with the 2 Americans who have also been staying here for 2 months. That is so sweet of them and I will enjoy it even though the Americans are hard to stomach.

Best go and do the homework. AlJazzera plays in the background and I see that Phillip Hughes died…that is just so sad.

Ciao for now

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On Italian classes and a weekend in Venezia

Another update on the last week. Hard to believe it has only been a week since I left Ham, Ariane and Rosa in Lyon feeling so sad!!
Started Italian lessons on Monday with Madeleine the German Mountain Bike Tour Guide and Hyun, the 16y.o. Korean and perpetually tired student.

The lessons are enjoyable and absorbing but progress is almost indecipherable for me in terms of being able to actually communicate in Italian. From this perspective it is very frustrating but the school, the people and the lessons are enjoyable.

Madelein loves me to pieces and has befriended me as her buddy. She is a dear and it is really good to have her struggling along with me.
The school puts on things in the evenings and we have been participating. So, there has been a little walking tour of the city followed by aperativo’s in a very funky student bar. There has been a night looking at frescoes…all described in Italian and therefore thoroughly incomprehensible. And there there has been the Cooking classes…OMG I am Mrs HOPELESS!!! But it is fun and you get to eat your produce. I haven’t got a fabulous kitchen here so there is no way I’m going to be able to practice but I have learnt about risotto, soups and then how to make pasta. I just really wish Ang was doing the pasta making course because you would have loved it and learnt heaps, Ang. I am struck by how badly we have gone about it with our efforts in Melbourne…far too ambitious without the technique!!

Oh well, we’ll have a go when I get home and see if we can get it right. I have the recipes translated into English!!

So the week flew by and on Friday afternoon it was time to head off to Venezia. I arrived in the afternoon and was meeting Chris at 6pm at the Rialto. So I had a little time to wander the street and marvel at the beauty of this extraordinary city. When I met Chris she had booked at a restaurant she wanted to try out. Then for the first lesson of the city…it is IMPOSSIBLE to find your way around. Every single time fucking Mr Google told us it was a 20 minute walk it would take at least an hour and more! When it said 30 mins you could kiss 2 hours away. It is a labyrinth as you will all know. Then there is the up and over, up and over technique which is just fine for the first hour or so but my little legs were starting to protest after 3 hours!!

Anyway Friday night was a lovely meal and so nice to catch up with Chris and spend some time. There is no friend more comfortable than the one you’ve known since primary school. Great meal, Aperol Spritz, lots of vino then home to bed.

Next day was spent at the Architectural Biennale. This was interesting…surprisingly for me who knows nothing about architecture. Then the walk home which I swear must have been a good 10 kms cos the Biennale was way, way way along the Grand Canal. We bought a bottle of wine and collapsed in the hotel before going out later for a ‘not too far away’ meal. A huge day.

Sunday we were off on the Vaporetta (water taxi) over to San Giorgio island for an exhibition of art in glassware which I thoroughly enjoyed. Then off to another exhibition Chris wanted to see. By now it was getting late and left us with a mad rush to get to my train in time. I really was running out of energy at this point and after picking up our cases, the final dash with case nearly did me in completely.

A quick comment on the fact that there are many yachts moored on San Giorgio for the Tongan brand. How amazing if you got yourselves this far!!!

But, I made the train and collapsed, fortunate to have a seat on a chocka block train. Then the 20 minute walk from the station before finally being able to get the shoes off, treat the blisters and get the fee up. A lovely weekend mainly because it was just great to be able to spend the time with Chris. There were no tourist sites covered. They are left for when I’m back there with Tull. But so, so many tourists, particularly on Sunday when Italians join the throngs of Americans, Chinese, Japanese and English. I reckon Venice has the most tourists of any Italian city, all competing with space to get over the canals!!!

Today back at school. Tomorrow also have the next dental appointment. Tomorrow it is exactly 3 weeks until I leave Bologna. This is so hard to believe. Chris thinks I should spend the 6 weeks from 18th Feb to end March in Rome and knows of an apartment that has just been renovated that would suit me. I think this sounds like a good idea and will do it if it all works out. Nice and central for you to visit Ang!!

That’s the update for the last week.

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Of very happy days in Bologna and Lyon

I thought it was time to do another email/ blog which will be a catch up since I stopped a week or so ago. So much has happened in that time that my head is spinning. I’m so sad now that it is all over so it is a good time to recap on good times to make sure I remember why I am here!!

Well I went very quiet because Rose arrived and she was a secret…a beautiful secret that entailed lots of deception to keep Ham in the dark, hence least said, the safest!!

The anticipation of her arrival was wonderful, I just kept getting more and more excited. Down to Roma to pick her up and here she was in Bologna with me. It was the very best thing in the world to be able to share my life here, to wonder the streets with her, to send her up the massive tower and to wait for her while she walked the 10kms to San Luca. We went to the odd museum, wandered the streets and ate out some wonderful restaurants and some you would describe as quirky (of the medieval variety). We drank Aperol Spritz, Beer (Rose) and wine. Rose immediately diagnosed my foot problem as having bought shoes too small so a new pair of shoes has done the trick!!! Having someone sharing my apartment was a great joy! It ended all too quickly (of course).

Last Wednesday we headed off for a day and a night exploring Milan. What a surprise for me at least because I didn’t know what to expect. It is a wonderful elegant, beautiful city. We stayed in a great hotel and spent a day in pouring, pouring rain but not missing much of a beat in terms of seeing what we wanted to see. Da Vinci’s Last supper, La Scala, Fine Art Museum and the magnificent Duomo. We went to a great Restaurant for dinner and spent the night chatting to a delightful co-diner.

Then….finally…it was time to go to Lyon and spring our surprise. It is hard to explain the excitement of that…I was in a total knot of excitement. Seeing Ham and Ariane again was enough to set me off. Taking them to the pub where Rose was planted was beyond everything. I think it’s fair to say Ham was surprised and very happy.

4 days in Lyon followed. What a fabulous city! It was an orgy of wonderful food in one superb restaurant after the other. For the record we started in a local place near our hotel Les Fines Gueules on Thursday night, then lunch on Friday (Ham’s birthday) at Le Nord (Paul Bocuse) and the Michellin Starred extravaganza on Friday night Le Mere Braziere. Saturday saw us at a Creperie for lunch (totally delicious) and Saturday night a real treat at Le Canut e Les Gones. Sunday was misery day for me as I had to say goodbye. It was made even more miserable when I completely broke a front (lower) tooth at breakfast. The food experience in Lyon was the reason we were there but the city itself was a complete surprise for me. It is a most wonderful city. An enchanting Old City with hidden treasures and beautiful buildings everywhere. There was much to see and do and a beautiful city to wonder. Apart from after dinner on Friday night when we nearly drowned, the weather was terrific and good for strolling a enjoying a lovely city.

Needless to say I’m totally hopeless at leaving and this was even worse given the intense anticipation and the wonderful joy of being with Ham, Ariane and Rosa altogether. I have been a misery bags ever since but it will pass. Back in Bologna and lots to do today. Started Italian lessons. They are shorter (2 hrs) than I thought as there are only 3 in the class. A 25y.o. German girl who’s job is a Mountain Bike Tour Guide!!! A 16 y.o. Korean boy who speaks neither English or Italian and says just about nothing…poor boy and then the elderly Australian woman. Because I’m in total beginners class it isn’t too challenging YET!!!! They also do little excursions as part of the deal so this afternoon we are going on a little walk to get to know Bologna…a bit late for me but the others are new to the city and I thought I’d better go although I’m feeling totally like a fish out of water.

Then there is the saga of the tooth!! Giancarlo’s wife is an orthodontist so she is going to have a look at it for me this afternoon and refer me on as appropriate. It isn’t covered by travel insurance (no teeth that have existing fillings!!) so that is going to be a significant blow!!

Oh well, life goes on and you can’t have good times all the time. Once I’ve been to the dentist I’ll get stuck into the vino to try to move on!! I’ll look forward to next weekend with Chris in Venice, that will help I hope but there is nothing in the whole world for me like being with my family and that has been just too, too wonderful. Ang the pressure is on you now!!!

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Back again after a day in Padova

Just when I was going to stop emailing/ blogging for a while (and I still will), I got agitated and decided to take myself off to Padova for the day. I’m not long home, totally exhausted. I think it was the hardest of my explorations walking-wise.

Firstly there are these Giotto Frescoes…World Heritage etc etc. You can’t buy tickets when you get there, you have to buy them the day before so I did all that and off I set early this morning. You have to be there 45 mins before your allotted time so I had to charge there from the train. I have seen them before, with Dinny in 2002, but wanted to see them again.

I spend the time on the train whenever I go anywhere working out what closes at 12, what closes at 1 and what stays open, then I have to remain very focussed to zigzag from one site to the other to fit in as much as I can. So when I got to the Giotto Chapel they offered me the prior time which I jumped at. It is of course brilliant but honestly for me once you’ve seen Ravenna everything seems dull. Nothing shimmers like those Mosaics. Still and all it was gorgeous. Then I charged off to the Duomo through the most wonderful market with fantastic produce that makes the mouth water. The Duomo was good…some little gems to see, then to the Battistry that is covered in marvellous frescoes. When I got to the Battistry which is a tiny little space the man on the door was trying to tell my something and I just didn’t get it. In the end he through his hands in the air and let me in. So I’m sitting there and all these people are arriving, then ‘Here comes the Bride’ starts up on the organ and there I am in the midst of a wedding with no-one else touristy and the exit blocked. Ahhhh so that’s what he was saying, oh shit. I looked at him and grinned and he found a way of getting me out without colliding with the bride. That’ll teach me!! But on the other hand I wouldn’t have got in unless I’d been just been dumb and I would have missed some fabulous work.

Then I had to charge to the other end of town to the Orta Bottanica. The oldest Botanical Gardens planted in 1545 by the medical faculty to study the medicinal properties of rare plants. It was gorgeous but there is also on the site a massive bio-diversity garden very similar to the Eden Project in UK. Gorgeous!! but bloody miles away. By this time I was exhausted but back I plodded to another Basilica…just in time!! Then I wanted to go to this other site next to it but had missed it. It was closed tip 2.30 and it was 1.30. This was actually fortuitous because I was dead on my feet. So I took a one hour lunch break in a nice little trattoria nearby. That was nice. Then back to the Oratorio which was well and truly worth the effort with some gorgeous frescoes by Titian and others. This was actually a bit of a highlight.

There was more to do but I’d managed to fit in the highlights so wondered back through town. Padova is a lovely, lovely town as are so many in Italy. I was struck by its connection to Venice. There are masks all over the place already in preparation for Carnivale, there are little canals reminiscent of Venice. After wandering for a bit, I decided I couldn’t stand a museum so headed back to the station to find a train back to Bologna. Home at 6.30pm…a long long day.

Then I looked to see if I’d won my fortune on the Cup…alas but I can’t tell you how close I came to putting money on ‘the barman’…great name. And that the Japanese horse dropped dead is awful, what drama! Well I got through Cup day in a very different way but certainly quite as occupied as anyone.

Quiet day tomorrow for sure, my feet are telling me so!! This is certainly where the blogs peter out a bit!!

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Quiet times in Bologna

My posts will start to settle down from now on as I work to find a life in Bologna without the aspect of touring/ moving. It is hard but it will happen and writing an email/ blog each day will not be of great interest to anyone. So…every few days/ weekly depending on what goes on. When I have things of interest to report, I will of course. A trip to Lyon is coming up so I will be full of it then I’m sure.

The weekend in Bologna was quiet for me but not at all quiet for Bologna. This place just teems with people over the weekend. The centre is closed to traffic and out come the people in their masses. It’s gorgeous, but it’s oddly isolating as well. It’s a weird feeling having no-one you know nearby yet being part of so many people. I wander around and get to know the city…still finding surprises everywhere and places I haven’t been but gradually becoming more and more familiar. I buy my daily gelato and I sit in the sun…I’ve worked out the sunniest spots to sit and fortunately the sun is still shining very bravely despite losing a lot of it’s heat. Yesterday I went to the National Art Gallery which I enjoyed for a couple of hours. I’m getting to know the Bolognese artists but wish I knew more. I may just explore the option of courses that teach me, although I only have space for one course at a time and it will be a major challenge to learn Italian when I return from Lyon.

AlJazeera has become my friend, as did Tyrion Lannister…sadly that friendship ended and now I’m trying to bond with Nucky Thompson again but it definitely isn’t the same…give me a dwarf any time!!! I have started to read The Age each morning with my coffee. I love going out for my morning coffee and my Dolce Vuota (cwassant)!!, it gets me out of the house and now I take the iPad with The Age to keep me up-to-date…to the extent that I even chose a horse to bet on for the Cup this morning…Ang has my instructions!!

Everything around here closes at 12.30-1pm and doesn’t open again until 4pm. I find that really hard to get used to. For these 3 hours the trattoria’s are full, full but if you don’t want to have a massive lunch the rest of the place is totally deserted. I don’t know how the Italians aren’t fat, fat but they aren’t. I think it must be all the walking they do.

That’s it everyone. Ups and downs. Times when I miss home just SO much like Cup Day which you wouldn’t know was happening here. Times when I wonder what the hell I’m doing but overall I’m managing and surviving and enjoying Bologna…it’s a truly great city. I live for those precious times when I meet up with one of you…hence the onus is a bit on Ham and Ariane at the moment/ this year. I just can’t wait to see them and get a few great big hugs.

More when something happens