ITINERARY
DAY 0—SUNDAY
Departure for Bologna, Italy.
DAY 1—MONDAY
MORNING: Arrival at Bologna's Stazione Centrale (main train station). Group transfer to hotel. Lunch at a local restaurant (included).
AFTERNOON: Guided walking tour of Bologna. See the Torri degli Asinelli e Garisenda, among the few survivors of the original 200 that once formed the skyline of Bologna, Piazza Cavour, and Piazza Maggiore, the central square. Welcome dinner at a local restaurant (included).
HOTEL: Overnight in Bologna
DAY 2—TUESDAY
MORNING: Guided tour of Ravenna to see the magnificent Byzantine mosaics at the Battistero degli Ariani, the Battistero Neoniano, Sant'Apollinare Nuovo, and San Vitale and the Mausoleo di Galla Placidia. Lunch at a local restaurant (included).
AFTERNOON: Visit to Faenza, famous for the faÏence ceramic ware which gave the town its name. Tour of Museo Internazionale delle Ceramiche, one of the largest ceramic collections in Italy. Dinner at a local restaurant (included).
HOTEL: Overnight in Bologna
DAY 3—WEDNESDAY
MORNING: Guided tour of Bologna including the church of San Petronio and the Abbazia di Santo Stefano, seven medieval churches jumbled together under one roof. Lunch at a local restaurant (not included).
AFTERNOON: Afternoon free to explore Bologna, shop, or take a passeggiata on the city's charming streets. Dinner at a local restaurant (not included).
HOTEL: Overnight in Bologna
| Buon Appetito |
| As Italy's capital of gastronomy, Bologna was known as la grassa (the fat), a description less flattering today than it once was. Traditional dishes include cappelletti romagnoli, lasagne verdi, tortellini in brodo, and erbazzone. Parma, the heart of Italy's bountiful Food Valley, is home to Parmigiano-Reggiano, the "king of cheeses," and Prosciutto di Parma, the famous ham. Other food specialties of the Emilia-Romagna region include aceto balsamico tradizionale, mortadella, and culatello, a type of cured meat. |
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DAY 4—THURSDAY
MORNING/AFTERNOON: Tour of the walled town of Ferrara, the residence of the Este dukes, an eccentric dynasty that ranked as a major political force throughout Renaissance times. Visit the moated Castello Estense, Palazzo del Comune, and the Duomo. Wine tasting and lunch at a local winery (included). Dinner at a local restaurant (included).
HOTEL: Overnight in Bologna
DAY 5—FRIDAY
MORNING: Transfer to Parma. Morning guided tour of the Lombard-Romanesque Duomo in Piazza Duomo, the exquisite Battistero, and the Campanile. Lunch at a local restaurant (included).
AFTERNOON: Guided tour of Piazza Garibaldi, Palazzo Pilotta, the Galleria Nazionale, and the Camera di San Paolo, originally the refectory of the Benedictine convent of San Paolo and frescoed by Correggio in 1518 with mythological scenes. Dinner at a local restaurant (included).
HOTEL: Overnight in Parma
DAY 6—SATURDAY
MORNING: Visit to a dairy factory to see the production of Parmigiano-Reggiano and a tour of a prosciuttificio (ham factory) to see how Prosciutto di Parma is made. Lunch at a local restaurant (included).
AFTERNOON: Guided tour of the spectacular fifteenth-century Castello di Torrechiara, including the Camera díOro, which has a splendid frescoed ceiling. Dinner at a local restaurant (not included).
HOTEL: Overnight in Parma
DAY 7—SUNDAY
MORNING: Day trip to Mantova, the scene of Verdi's Rigoletto and former stronghold of the Gonzagas, one of Renaissance Italy's richest and most powerful families, who ruled the town for three centuries. Morning guided tour of the Palazzo Ducale, the Basilica di Sant'Andrea, Piazza dell'Erbe, and the eleventh-century Rotonda, (Mantova's oldest church). Lunch at a local restaurant (not included).
AFTERNOON: Guided tour of the Palazzo Tè, which contains some of the finest (and most steamily erotic) fresco-paintings of the entire Renaissance. Dinner at a local restaurant (not included).
HOTEL: Overnight in Parma
DAY 8—MONDAY
MORNING: Visit to Reggio Emilia including Piazza Prampolini, the Palazzo del Municipio, and the Piazza San Prospero, which comes alive on market days. Lunch at a local restaurant (included).
AFTERNOON: Guided tour of Modena including the magnificent 12th-century cathedral, one of the region's greatest Romanesque buildings, the Torre Ghirlandina, and the Palazzo dei Musei, which houses the city museums and art galleries. Dinner at a local restaurant (included).
HOTEL: Overnight in Parma
DAY 9—TUESDAY
MORNING/AFTERNOON: Transfer to Bologna. Lunch at a local restaurant (not included). Afternoon at leisure to explore the porticoed city or shop. Farewell dinner at a local restaurant (included).
HOTEL: Overnight in Bologna
DAY 10—WEDNESDAY
Early morning group transfer to Bologna's Stazione Centrale (main train station) and departure. Arrivederci!
