“Bologna is a city that has a soul.” Giorgio Bassani
After two months of hiking across Romania, I arrived in Bologna with a very simple plan: relax, walk less (I only walked 20,000 steps a day instead of 35,000), eat excellent pasta, drink some espresso, and give my legs a chance to remember what normal people do all day.
Bologna is not my favorite city in Italy. I don’t know why. I can’t quite put my finger on it…it’s just a feeling. But it does have some interesting history, beautiful architecture, and really (really) good food.
One afternoon, after several hours of walking and shopping – I needed some “normal” clothes besides my hiking gear – I stopped at a little café tucked away on a side street near Mercato delle Erbe. It didn’t even have a sign outside, just a few empty tables and chairs.
Nobody was around, which was perfect. I was looking for a quiet place to drink an espresso and write a couple of postcards.
I walked inside and noticed most of the lights were dimmed. There wasn’t a soul in the place except two men behind the counter.
The man at the register asked me what I wanted.
“An espresso, please.”
He looked over at the other man, made a gesture with his hands, then looked back at me and said, “That will be one euro.”
I stood there for a moment, not quite sure what I was feeling, but I knew something was different about this place.
There was a little rack on the counter with postcards featuring sign language. The walls were covered with posters about sign language. Above me, hanging from the ceiling, was an art installation featuring hands making different signs.
I asked the guy at the register, “What is the theme of this café?”
He smiled.
“Ah, the owner is deaf and so are all the employees except me – so I can speak with the customers, of course.”
“I love it! What’s the name of this place? I didn’t see a sign outside.”
I started laughing.
“Clever…Bar Without a Name.”
I sat outside, alone, sipping my espresso and writing my postcards. I was a little sad to see that nobody else was at this bar with such a cool and unique story.
Plus, the coffee was excellent.
Later…
A group of eight or nine university students approached me just as I signed my name to my final postcard and asked if they could have the extra chair at my table.
Of course.
That’s when I realized the entire place was packed with people.
I hadn’t even noticed. I had been completely inside my little bubble of writing postcards.
Turns out, lots of people love this place.
I was just early for aperitivo.
The city itself was crowded, too, which made for some excellent people-watching.
Bologna has three official nicknames – La Dotta, La Rossa, La Grassa – but I don’t know if anyone actually uses them in everyday conversation, but they do a pretty good job of describing the city.
-
La Dotta – the Learned, because of the university. Bologna is home to the oldest university in the Western world – University of Bologna founded in 1088 – so the city is filled with young, vibrant people and there’s a certain feeling of energy and possibility wafting through the streets.
-
La Rossa – the Red, for its red/orange buildings & roofs, and historically left-wing politics.
-
La Grassa – the Fat, because… well… food. The food is amazing. I dined on the signature dish Tagliatelle al Ragù (twice – only one photo below though) not only because it’s the local cuisine but because it’s my actually my favorite pasta. If you’re in Bologna, check out the restaurant Ragū – it’s quick, cheap, and comes in a cardboard box, but it’s delicious. And the staff is really friendly and most of them are students at the University.
Mortadella – That giant pink sausage with little white cubes of fat (and sometimes with pistacchi/pistachios) is from Bologna. The name bologna used for American lunch meat comes from here as well.
Tortellini – is also from Bologna…with a weird origin story according to the internet. Legend says the shape was inspired by the navel of Venus. One version of the story involves an innkeeper peeking through a keyhole at Venus and then trying to recreate her belly button in pasta.
Oh, and it’s a must to grab some gelato while you’re in town. My “other” favorite flavor is raspberry and chocolate – unless they have chocolate with orange peel.
Then that wins.
There are not one but Two Towers that are actually leaning in Bologna – take that Pisa.
The Two Towers: Garisenda & Asinelli – were built in the Middle Ages. The taller Asinelli Tower is about 97 meters (318 ft) high. And Garisenda leans dramatically enough that Dante actually mentioned it in the Divine Comedy.
This makes me wonder…how long have
these towers actually been leaning if Dante wrote about it? You’d think they’d done something to fix them by now given that every time I’ve been here there are construction barricades around the block and the “towers are closed for renovations.”
One final fun fact: In 2021, the city’s porticoes were added to the UNESCO World Heritage List. The city has nearly 40 km of porticoes. Those covered walkways aren’t just pretty – they were originally built partly to accommodate the city’s growing population and university students – and more importantly, they keep you dry when it rains. The famous Portico di San Luca stretches about 3.8 km uphill and has 666 arches.
Bologna is a very beautiful city and if you get a chance to visit, definitely go…and make a stop at Bar Senza Nome for a delicious espresso.
Next stop: The Dolomites
Much love & gratitude. Namaste 🙏
If you enjoyed this post, I’d be grateful if you’d like and share it.
Please look closely to see that my beloved bandana print is making a comeback in fashion. I saw these dresses, skirts, and shirts while window shopping.
Maybe we should keep that pattern for pocket squares, handkerchiefs, and hiking accessories.
