All Together in Bologna

Our wonderful time visiting Paige and Chris has come to an end, and frankly a brutal end. Our taxi arrived at 430am, which of course meant we had to get up and moving at 4am. Brutal and no fun. Then of course there was Marianne our driver. Whew...that was a LOT of energy at 430 in the friggen morning. But, she got us to the airport, so there is that.

We were on Austrian Air and did a quick change of planes in Vienna, before heading on to Bologna. When we arrived, we were met by Claudio, who is a great friend to to Ken's brother Rick at Clemson

(go Tigers) and is from Imola, a bedroom community to Bologna. Katelyn and Shaun had also arrived from Milwaukee, so the only one missing was Ashley.

Claudio took Ken, Don and Shaun to the apartment, while Katelyn and I hung out waiting at the airport for Ashley who was arriving within the hour. She arrived, looking like the rest of us (except Claudio) which was worn out and ready for a nap.

Our AirBnB advised we could drop our bags since it wouldn't be ready until 3p (it was just after 12p). Luckily, with Claudio speaking Italian, he was able to determine that my intel on dropping the bags wasn't reliable. The owner didn't answer the phone and he finally got the owners elderly grandmother to respond. She agreed to let Claudio take the bags up...but was not happy.

When Ashley, Katelyn and I arrived, we were told no way we could get the bags up (it was now 1p). Claudio and I attempted to talk with the grandmother again (who spoke no English) and she finally allowed us in to store the rest of the bags in the apartment. Then we were off to find food.

We walked to the center of town underneath ancient porticoes to Neptune Square and with some help from a friendly waiter got a recommendation for a restaurant a couple blocks away. With seven

of us, it is not an easy accommodation, but they found us a table that was perfect.

Claudio suggested we get an appertivo, of Aperal spritz, a classic pre-meal drink in Italy. Unfortunately, the first round came and it was made with Campari, so was sent back. The second round was not as potent, but still wasn't what was expected....but ok, we were happy regardless, and if Rome (ok Bologna) we do as the locals which was much easier having Claudio as our guide and interpreter.

After an awesome meal that started with parmagiano, prosciutto and some great sangiovese wine and pasta, we ended with tiramasu. A very nice way to get the culinary Italy experience started.

Now back to our challenge of getting into the apartment. It was now

315p, so should be no issue. Uh yeah. After walking back, we rang the bell. No answer. We rang again. No answer. So, I tried the grandmother again. She buzzed me in. I went up and we tried to communicate in my non-existent Italian and her equally non-existent English. Bottom line, she finally let us in (it was her grand-daughters apartment) and I made a big deal of grazie'ing her a bunch. She was so nice she gave us extra toilet paper and large bottle of sparkling water. So, I gave her a hug and a kiss on both cheeks and she was beaming.

the apartment was very bright, had 4 beds and was really great (now that we were in it!). At that point, we all took a well-deserved nap and finally got ourselves moving around 630p to explore the area. Bologna old city is surrounded by ancient walls and gates. The streets are lined with porticos, that seem never-ending and add to the overall ambiance. We wandered down small streets and found a restaurant with a few tables outside, where we had a repeat of lunch...good wine, awesome food, etc. And....the best part? the price was $100 for the six of us.

We ended the night with a bit more wandering through winding alleys, all which seem to end with people sitting at outdoor tables, drinking, eating and generally enjoying life in Bologna. Of course, we couldn't pass up the gelato (which is tending to be a theme!) Great start to Italy!