my Bologna has a first name.

My next stop was Bologna, which is a nice town that we had heard has amazing food. Everything in Bologna was really accessible, and we were able to walk the entire city center in the first afternoon. We kept coming across churches and museums, and we would just enter them out of curiosity. It was fun to have enough time to just wander and take in the surroundings.

This square is in front of Basilica di Santa Maria dei Servi, which I knew I wanted to make sure I found. The church currently has Cimabue's Virgin and Child Enthroned, which I have learned about in my art history classes. It was absolutely awesome to see the piece, especially in a church. It is totally different seeing the pieces in an intended location. There was a woman praying in front of the particular chapel holding the piece. Seeing art is it was intended adds an entirely new level of understanding. Also, the piece is from the 13th century. SO OLD. So incredible.

The second day Erin and I decided to climb one of Bologna's towers. At one point there may have been over 150 towers in the city, but only a few still stand. The one that we went up in is the Asinelli Tower, and it was over 400 steps to the top. The above picture is supposed to give you a frame of reference. Remember the green roof.

This is the view from the top of the tower. I love that my camera has a panoramic setting. IT WAS SO PRETTY. And it was an amazingly clear day. We were really lucky. The picture below shows you the green roof. That's how high up we were. And we weren't even that out of breath.

Bologna was really pretty, and the food was amazing. We were ready to head on, though, and we were excited to see what Parma had to offer.