Pasta Bolognese in Bologna

 Friday 18th August 2023

Today we left Rimini for the big trip to Bologna in our car.  After a few wrong turns, (navigator error probably because of MS but also GPS not up to date with road works etc), we got out of Rimini. All was good until we hit  a traffic jam somewhere nearing Bologna. Three lanes of traffic would stop, start and go a bit and then stop. We had  no idea what was happening. Finally it cleared and we got to Bologna but again hard to find the car entrance to the hotel but got here eventually.

The hotel was my booking and while nice, it has no pool, no aperitif in the evenings and is across the road from the main train station of Bologna. When the hotel said it was in Bologna Central, I assumed it was in the middle of the city . No, it is near the Central train station. 

Not as good an area for restaurants though lots of takeaway food being close to the railway station. (Yeah?)

After a drink in the bar, we decided to take the advice of nice lady at reception who recommended we take the red bus for a one hour tour of the old city, central Bologna. The stop was just outside the hotel (good choice of hotel) and it was a very scenic tour with English commentary.  We sat on top of the bus and it was OK until it stopped and it was very very hot, about 32 or more.

Some of my odd side pictures from the bus.

Paul had a beer

The bus stop

Lots of porticos in Bologna.






A church






The tour took us above the city to a park to take photos









And back to the hotel for dinner after a little rest. We could not find anywhere close by to have a meal so we ended up in the hotel restaurant which was very upmarket.

I actually got bread. Mine are the 2 rolls at the bottom, long life stuff which was not bad. Paul got fresh rolls and also bread sticks..

My very nice pasta bolognase (no gluten-bloody-free spaghetti)

My dessert of fruit salad .


Paul' meal

Medium rare steak which I could have had.

Tiramisu which I definitely could not. Big sigh


It was expensive but great food and service.  We had dinner at about 8.30pm, a bit early by Italian standards and the only other people in the restaurant were Americans and Australians. As we were leaving about 10, more people were coming in.

After a  big, beautiful day in Bologna, bedtime.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Galleria, Galleria

Image
 Monday 14th August 2023 Today was a sad day as Ben and Izzy were leaving to go on  It was in this sombre mood that we decided to go to the village cemetery to check out some family history of those who had checked out. (sorry) Italian cemeteries are like little villages with little houses of family crypts as well as those that are on walls around the cemetery. I should have taken a photo and will include it later if i do We found my grandparents, Dad's mother and father and I did take a photo  We ran into Manuela who was 'visiting' her husband Sergio. She was able to give us a bit of history and helped us find other relatives we had never heard of. We had already found Zia Ada and her husband, Santo as well as Zia Janina and her husband. With her was buried Manuela's first child who had died days after birth.  We also saw Ermano, LallaMaria's husband who died a few months after we saw him in 2019. They include photos on the graves which makes it even more poign...
Read more

Desperately seeking Piazza Venezia in Piazza Grazioli

Image
  Monday 7th August 2023 Good news! we both survived the night. It turned out to be quite a comfortable bed even with pain and anger as bedfellows. The room We are staying at the Piazza Venezia Grand Suites in Piazza Graziola. Hard for our taxi        driver and us to find because it is not a hotel but apartments.                      Mia colpa, mia colpa, mia colpa. Paul thought i was trying to get a good price but i am just not good at booking hotels.  I was    seduced by promise of a lift (the ittiest bittiest lift you have ever seen),  bar fridge (not bad    but hard to find), air conditioning (great), free WiFi and large tv.  But it is a tiny room  in a not so great  part of Rome and not easy to get into as no staff after 8pm at night. (and no gym!) However we had a lovely surprise this morning when 2 lovely asian ladies served us    ...
Read more

Travelling around the countryside

Image
  Friday 11th August 2023 After our big night, we had arranged to go into Castelraimondo this morning to buy somethings from cousin Sara's shop.  She is Gianfranco and Patrizia's daughter.  Apparently there was a market on as well and this was a drawcard. Paul and I went in one car, Ben and Izzy in another followed Carmine and Tizziana in theirs. OK but pretty much like every other market, shoes, jewelery toys and clothes.  Intrepid shoppers We found some lovely things at Sara's shop and of course we then needed coffee and cake including gluten bloody free @#$% stuff. Normal people got jam crostada and cream filled croissants while I got stuff in packets. (Pity party moment) We all went our separate ways to explore and Paul and I headed to Pioraco, a little town between Castelraimondo and Sefro. It is surrounded by amazing cliffs and mountains made of stone. Very spectacular and my photos do not do it justice at all. Pioraco is apparently the Paper capital ...
Read more