Exquisite Emilia

Our journey begins in Emilia’s cultural heart and its capital: Bologna. Home to the oldest university in the world, the city is known for music, art and architecture. Under the Etruscans in the sixth century BC, Bologna was called Felsina and was an important urban center for the people of the Po Valley. The Celts followed, and then the Romans who linked it to Liguria and named it the Octava Regio (8th region) of the Empire. The name Emilia derives from the Via Aemilia, the Roman road connecting Rome to northern Italy, which itself was named for the Roman consul Marcus Aemilius Lepidus.

We start with an introductory meeting, followed by a walk in the historic center. Tonight we toast the start of our tour in a local restaurant featuring traditional regional recipes and grapes.

After breakfast, we enjoy a tour of Bologna’s portici (porticos). The city contains the longest continuous porticoes in the world, nearly 25 miles of them! Even in the rainy season, locals boast of how they do not need to carry umbrellas as it is possible to get around without ever exposing oneself to the elements.

This morning, we take in the more than two-mile long Portico di San Luca, which leads dramatically to the Sanctuary of the Madonna of San Luca. An architectural feat barely to be believed, as we walk it (more like ‘hike it,’ given the ascent), you will be awestruck by the 666 arches of this Baroque arcade.

Later this morning we travel to the charming city of Modena, renowned for its balsamic vinegar and its sports cars! Truly ancient, Modena was known to have existed during Hannibal’s invasion of Italy in the third century BC. Following ambles in the city center and lunch on your own (please ask us for suggestions!), we return to Bologna in the late afternoon.

After some time to rest and freshen up, we enjoy a late afternoon on our own in Bologna with more opportunities to discover its museums, culture, history or simply relax in one of the beautiful piazzas, before savoring another delicious dinner in one of the city’s excellent restaurants.

Many Italians agree that this is the apogee of national cuisine. As fiercely devoted as Italians are to their own regional offerings, they concur that you dine at another level when you dine in Emilia.  A factor in this may be the Emiliani reputation for pleasure. Conviviality and hospitality around the table are cultural treasures here, signaling what really matters to the people: well-being and enjoying oneself.

We find this as we continue our travels today, departing Bologna after breakfast for Reggio Emilia. Parmigiano-Reggiano gets its name from Reggio and like champagne, real Parmigiano-Reggiano is made here (in addition to other provinces such as Parma, Modena and part of Bologna and Mantova). Let’s see if we can taste the difference. On arrival, we visit a local producer. From here, we continue on to the town of Canossa, enjoying lunch en route. Canossa is named for the most fascinating character of Emilian history and one of the most influential women in all of European history. Matilde di Canossa (1046-1115) powerfully and cunningly ruled the feudal territory surrounding Bologna, brokering deals between the Holy Roman Empire and the Papacy and thus securing the fates, and later remarkable prosperity, that Bologna, Piacenza, Modena and Reggio would all enjoy in centuries to come. We hear her story as we enjoy a hike to Matilde’s castle and the adjoining museum.

We reach our agriturismo by mid-afternoon. After checking in and freshening up, we visit a local balsamic vinegar maker before a farm-fresh meal tonight at our agriturismo highlighting the food stories and terroir of this slice of Emilia.

Following our breakfast this morning, we make the short journey to Parma, famous for the prosciutto crudo (air cured meats, served uncooked) and sausages (salame and coppa, for two) made here.

As we explore the town, a stop at the Farnese Theater is a must.  One of the most beautiful sites of Parma, it was commissioned by Ranuccio I, Duke of both Parma and Piacenza, to celebrate the passing visit of Cosimo II de’Medici (most famous for being the patron of Galileo Galilei, his childhood tutor) en route to Milan. Due to health problems, de’ Medici never made it, but this work of architectural wonder has been pleasing locals and visitors ever since.

We continue on to Colorno for a visit to the Slow Food Presidium of Culatello (cured meat) and tasting. We lunch here before an afternoon return to our agriturismo to soak in the countryside before a late afternoon transfer to Reggio.  Dinner tonight is on your own but please ask us for suggestions!

After breakfast and en route to Porretta Terme today, we stop by a winery for a visit and tasting of the quintessentially Emilian red Lambrusco, which is most often enjoyed frizzante (slightly sparkling).

From here we continue on to the historic Regional Park of Monte Sole, gateway to the Apennines. Lesser-known than the Alps, the Apennines have not entirely been discovered by hikers and cyclists. Sadly, these mountains may be most famous for the role they played in World War II. The landscape here is thick with chestnuts, which locals call “bread trees” for the life-saving value they served during the war.  As farms and villages were destroyed, people had to hide and forage in the woods. These mountains are also famed for porcini mushrooms, best hunted, as they are most plentiful, in the Val di Taro.

Lunch today is a picnic in the mountains.  By late afternoon we reach Porretta and check in at the hotel. Between today and tomorrow, be sure to allocate some time for the hotel spa and its natural hot springs for which the town is famed. Dinner tonight is in a typical restaurant, right where the celebrity chef Mario Batali learned the noble art of home-made pasta!

Make it a leisurely morning at the hotel and perhaps return to the spa. By mid-morning, we pay a visit to the nearby Rocchetta Mattei. No structure is likely to as playfully disorienting as this one.  Commissioned by an eccentric count in the nineteenth century, the Rocchetta (“small fortress”) draws heavily from the Spanish-Moorish style.  (The count was a fan of the Alhambra in Granada and cathedral in Cordoba.) Situated deep in the Italian mountains, it could not look more out of place here. We enjoy an amble through this bizarre castle of sorts and hear stories of its origin.

Lunch in Porretta today is your own. This afternoon, we journey to Castel d’Aiano to visit a small historic museum and then head out on a hike to the Linea Gotica (Gothic Line), which in the final months of World War II, became a central battlefield. Nature is incredible: Except for a few remarkably preserved foxholes and blinds, we find no trace of the terrible battles once waged here.

Tonight let’s celebrate our journey into Emilia with a cooking demonstration and dinner hosted by the local celebrity chef Riccardo Facchini!

After breakfast at 9apm catch our 1-hour group transfer to Bologna airport or feel free to extend your stay in the area.  Arrivederci! (Goodbye in Italian)  and we hope to see you again soon!