Bologna high and low

Kathie got a little extra rest as I climbed the Torre degli Asinelli, all 498 steps, to get a tremendous view of the city.  The tower was completed in 1119 and was lucky enough to withstand the heavy Allied bombing of Bologna during WWII  Story is that pilots were betting who could take it down, along with its sister the Torre della Garisenda, fortunately there was no winner.  The tower stands just over 97meters high, ~319 feet, and leans 1.3 degrees.  Not as much as the Torre di Pisa (3.97 degrees) but is nearly 2x as tall.  The Torre della Garisenda stands a mere 48m high yet its lean is 4degrees, more that Pisa's famous tower.  Bologna is the city of towers, at one time there were 200+, now about 20 remain, and the Due Torri (two towers) are the symbol of the town.  

(I bet the bus cables weren't there back in the early 1100's)

Check out some of that stairwell, it was a hike.

Note how worn the steps are, they were very uneven.

But the view of Bologna, bella Bologna, was breathtaking.  The straight road in this shot is the Roman road from Piacenza to Rimini, passing through Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, and Bologna.  These towns are all about 25 miles apart, the distance the Roman Legions could march in a day.  (Kathie keeps telling me we don't need to walk that much)

Here is a different side of the tower, showing Piazza Maggiore the main square of town, in front of the Basilica di San Petronio.  On the top of the hill on the far right is Santuario della Madonna di San Luca, more on that in a future blog).

Great pano shot from my iPhone, check out some of the remaining towers of the city.

Bologna's Roman past is evident under the city.  When the library was being remodeled they discovered ruins dating as far back as 200 BC.  So the Italians did what they have perfected, found a way to protect the past and forge ahead, they put a glass floor in the library and opened the basement up for visits.

Kathie joined me as we went to check out Roche Bobois, a local furniture store.  We need some new stuff but here, well, we were heading to the lower level to check out the Roman Road they found while working on their building.  Naturally they preserved it and allow you to come and see the still solid, ~2000 year old road.  You can even see the wheel ruts, although its tough to see them in the picture it was a little dark down.

We also checked out Basilica San Domenico where Michelangelo carved three statues decorating the remains of Saint Dominic.  The statues are small, roughly 2 feet high, and were among the multiple statues adorning the tomb.  They were early works of the master, intermingled with others on the tomb without any fanfare.  I think the only reason they shone on the tomb is because we knew they were his work, they were rather in line with the rest of the artisans IMO.  The statues he carved are the the second from the left on the middle row, and the angel in the very front of the third picture. I didn't get a pic of his third sculpture on the backside of the tomb, as what really stood out to me back there was the ornate "container" which held Saint Dominic's skull.  Look close in the center of the chalice.......pretty creepy.  Also the church's choir area was tremendous, the wood inlayed with carvings and just so symmetrical and lovely, I bet the sound at the time of services was just wonderful.

 As if more would fit in the day........we went to the Music Museum, housing all kinds of old instruments and the oldest printed music book in the world, printed in Venice in 1501, the bottom book pictured.  Once a private collection it was hidden from the government and actually taken to a private house where the government from Naples was convinced it was a private library and should not be given to them for taxes. Definitely worth a quick visit, longer if you are a musically inclined person.

We finished the day dining at Trattoria dai Birichini enjoying Kathie's favorite dish, strozzapreti guanciole rocket and Parmesan (strangle the priest).  I had the tagliatelle with mortadella.  We had a delicious appetizer of burrata with Sardinian bread and veggies and a bottle of Prosecco, yummy.  Go to this place and get this food, it is fabulous.

Even after my 22,993 steps on this day I don't want to leave bella Bologna.