Tuesday 15th September 2026

Day in Bologna

Hard not to wake up early when it’s the bedfellows milestone 70th birthday.

What more appropriate way to start the day than with a 700am visit to the laundromat where one could wash and dry both clothes and the pet. It would have been some spectacle seeing Rover in the tumble washer!

No fancy dining experience to start the day instead it was a typical Italian fare of coffee and croissant, without a cigarette.

A lovely stroll through the modern and ancient porticos with a throng of locals and kids heading off to school – some looking none to pleased returning to the classroom. With no school uniform the older kids certainly wore outfits that touched all spheres of fashion- showing plenty of skin seemed to be the aim.

We made our way down to the Quadrilatetal where the steps of the unfinished basilica San Petrionia were already packed with awaiting visitors and locals enjoying a coffee and a ciggie.

A run through the narrow streets heading towards the university was a real feast for the eyes with, small goods, pastries, fruit , seafood and diary products displayed in a plethora of ways to lure the customers. Cafes and restaurants already enjoyed great patronage creating an amazing atmosphere in this City of The Food.

The streets closer to the univetsity were inundated with bubbly fresh faced kids carrying arms full of new glossy textbooks as they kicked off the educational year.

Seems the area had more Copy shops than Coffee Shops , that said the latter were well patronised by a Cosmopolitan group of students.

The university is supposedly the oldest in Europe with graduates and lecturers including Copernicus and modern day Nobel Prize winning poet Caraducci- the preserved lecture room of the latter had an atmosphere where if you closed your eyes you could imagine him lecturing..

The Library and its Museum tour was amazing the breadth subjects covered by the science exhibitions was amazing. One quirky one enhanced my knowdge on the birthing process- oh it’s good to be a male.

For the next 30 minutes walking back to the square we were about the only ones over 21.

Back in Food Land we collected a takeaway lunch and visited a local bar where as long as you were drinking you could eat your own fare. It was dark and dingy but had a good vibe. We shared a small courtyard with a couple of painters eating pizza and quaffing down a bottle of red. Hoped that the next paint job didn’t involve scaling a ladder in those wobbly boots.

Full of fine fate and a couple of beers/wine we headed home for a Nanna Nap before our Birthday Bash. Pretty ironic that we decided to have our renovations done whilst on holidays to avoid the noise and disruption only to have our apartment next to a property where jackhammering was pretty constant.

Karma comes served in many ways!

Fresh and dolled up we enjoyed an aperitivo in a street side bar in the company of a Kujo like mutt just watching the world go by – boy was it a mixed bag .

Killed a bit of time sitting around the local square watching the locals enjoy the family time so well embraced in Italy.

Time could not wait for two partygoers so we headed off to the recommended restaurant. What looked like a doorway into a small bar ballooned out into a magnificent covered courtyard catering for 100 people. At 730 when we had our first drink it was 2% full. It slowly filled and then by 900 was almost at capacity.

Dinner was again typical of the region washed down with a Piedmont Vermintino. It was a wonderful way to finish the day and head home working on what to do for birthday 71.