Bologna has plenty to boast about. Big bowls of pasta dressed in the sauce they invented here might grace many tables, but there’s refinement and modernity too.
Wander between ancient basilica and market stalls, delis stacked high with produce and galleries bursting with local and international art. The students keep the town on its toes, the locals keep it real.
The tilting towers
While perhaps not as famous as Pisa’s Leaning Tower, Bologna can lay claim to its own towers that deviate from the vertical. The Torre degli Asinelli, built in the early 12th century, tilts 2.2m and has nearly 500 steps that you can climb for an unforgettable view (sorry, no elevators).
Its neighbour, Torre Garisena, is only just over half the height, but has an even more pronounced lean that means it’s closed to the public. If you want to ascend to the top of the former, you’ll need to book online in advance.
The scale of some of Bologna’s architectural ambition can often be measured literally. The Basilica di San Petronio is one of Europe’s largest churches – so large in fact that it has never been finished, even though work began in 1390. There’s a vast sundial inside and fascinating interior decoration.
There’s even more elegance on show at Basilica di Santo Stefano, originally a grouping of seven different churches, although a mere four stand today, of differing ages but similar fascination.
A culinary adventure
With the city boasting the nickname ‘la grassa’ – ‘the fat one’ – it should come as no surprise that eating in Bologna is a foodie’s dream. This is a city that likes to eat its fill, whether it’s of fresh egg pasta or the Bolognese sauce the city gives its name to.
A word of warning though – only order if it says ‘tagliatelle al ragù’ on the menu. Anywhere that calls it ‘spaghetti bolognese’ is a tourist trap, the locals never call it that. Whether at a local trattoria, market or street stall, there’s always a variety of filled tortellini and tortelloni, cold cuts like mortadella and prosciutto, alongside world-class gelato for dessert.
If Michelin-starred dining is more your thing, then eating at the I Portici Restaurant is a must. This elegant establishment serves acclaimed spins on local classics, but also risotto with pumpkin, sea urchins and lime, a deceptively simple spaghetti with a five-tomato sauce and petite but flavour-packed pastries to finish.
Meet the Old Masters
Bologna may not shout from the rafters about its cultural achievements, but this is a city that takes its art seriously – both contemporary and classic.
At MAMbo, on Via Don Minzoni, you can explore the former in a former bakery converted into a showcase for modern Italian artists. It specializes in work by local painter Giorgio Morandi.
At the Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna, the focus is on the past, in a gallery that first opened in 1885. There is notable work from Raffaello, Tintoretto, Titian and Giotto, in a sensitively handled collection broken up into different schools of painting. If that’s not your cup of tea, don’t worry, there are some 50 museums across the city for you to enjoy.
Car hire in Bologna is a great way to pack in the very best of the culture and architecture of this fine city, while tantalising your taste buds in Italy’s capital of food.
