Sunny with a chance of Earthquakes

Thursday was our last school day for the week. I haven't had a full week since the middle of April. Strange. That night we packed our bags and made ready for an early departure. We were awake at 3:30 so that we could make it to the airport near Brussels by 6. The Ryan Air flight took us over the alps and we landed safely in Bologna. The weather was warm and we found the energy to explore the city.

When wearing polarized glasses on the plane, on tends to see rainbows.

Produce market where we bought a few things to bring home.

A typical side street.

Piazza Maggiore - the main square.

Only 16 colleagues came (about half) but we split into smaller groups. The girls went shopping, the administration had drinks, and Clifton and I explored. It seemed like there was something extravagant around every corner. The city is home to the oldest university in Europe, and we were able to tour the library. It was complete with an incredibly ornate room where bodies were dissected for the purpose of teaching. It seemed quite respectful toward the dead.

The Library entrance.

The Library cloisters.

The Library staircase.

The dissection table.

The pulpit - note the statues holding it up lack skin.

The angel watching over the dissection table.

The cathedrals are much different from those in the North. Churches in the Netherlands are full of light and feel open and airy. The windows are as big as possible and the supports are made to look slender. In Italy the light is dim and structural elements seem heavy, dark, and cold. I suppose both were created as a refuge - one like a warm bath of light to escape the persistant cold and rain while the other is a cool glass of water on a scorching hot summer day. It is amazing to see what people were capable of so long ago.

Small church hidden in a side street.

A church that overlooks a square.

The dome church.

Wish we could have gone inside.

Anyway, after seeing some of these churches (some were closed due to the recent and ongoing earthquakes and the one we entered didn't allow pictures) we made our way to the twin towers. One was leaning severely. Normally one can climb to the top of the tall one, which is still fairly straight, but they closed that too! I was bummed. After some delicious ice cream we headed back to the hotel for some rest and then had dinner. After a nice meal with everyone, we headed to the park so smoke some Cuban cigars. There happened to be a jazz concert taking place, so this was a perfect end to a very long and very enjoyable day. Needless to say, we slept well that night.

The Twin Towers.

Dinner.

Hard to find in the States.

Jazz concert in the park.

The next morning we did a bit of shopping and explored the city even further. We came across an antique market that had a few items that arrested my attention. There was a stand selling Nazi paraphernalia including uniform insignia, medals, and even pictures of Hitler. Right next to it was a bunch of stuff from the CCCP. There were a lot of interesting items at the market, but they were all very expensive. After a nice lunch outside in a quiet little side street, we packed up, got into the taxis, and flew home. Bologna is certainly a town we would visit again.

The antique market.

Just after the blue Ferrari passed by...

An exclusive jewelry shop.

A fancy shopping street (the covered walkway is typical).