Churches and Cheese!

Yesterday (Sunday) was another picture perfect day here, and so we decided to head up a very large hill (felt like a mountain to me) to see the Sanctuary of San Luca. It's located just outside of Bologna, and there is a 2.5 mile portico covering the walkway all the way up. Most of it is a steep incline but there are also hundreds of steps too. The walk isn't easy, and we were shedding coats and sweaters as we climbed. But the reward at the end was this beautiful church.

Because it was such a gorgeous day, there were lots of locals making the climb with us and lounging on the grounds surrounding the church. This is something Italians do well. They sit in groups around local churches and just hang out together for hours.

Greg took some photos during the morning after we climbed, and then he wanted to get some night shots. So we grabbed a cab (with a crazy Italian cabdriver who nearly killed us all) and we went back up for more photos. I sat in a cute little bar next to the church sipping wine while Greg took the shots. Here's the result:

Then this morning, bright and early, we took the 6:28 AM train to Parma to visit a farm where they make Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. There are several excellent tours that will take you to see things like this, but we preferred to try to do it on our own. We visited a very small farm just outside of Parma called San Pier Damiani. It's owned by a couple who make cheese every single day! They do have one man who helps them, but this is really hard work. The wife spoke only a little bit of English but we managed to communicate pretty well. One of the questions I asked her was if she ever gets a day off, and she laughed and said no. The cows make the milk and it comes in early every morning so they can make cheese. And that's what they do every single day! And they've been doing this for 25 years!

I took a few pictures of the process. You can see the copper vats that they use to stir and heat the cream for the cheese. Every vat makes just two rounds a day, and they have 6 vats. It's a whole lot of work for 12 rounds of cheese a day. No wonder it is pricey.

After leaving the farm, we took a few hours and walked around Parma, a very delightful city. The Duomo there has a very plain exterior, but like so many churches, once you walk in..... Wow!

The main sanctuary

One of several small chapels surrounding the sanctuary

And tucked in a back room of the Duomo was this wall carving from 1178. We are amazed at the amount of precious art work that you will find hidden away in these churches.

So tonight we are having dinner in our apartment, we're packing, and we're getting organized for the next part of our trip. And we are pretty exhausted! According to the app on my phone, we have walked 60 miles during our time here!

But before we leave Bologna, a few memories.

This is the guy who guided us back to our apartment every day. He's pointing right to our street.

And this is the restaurant we walk by on our way home. And every time I see it, I want to put an N at the end of America. Didn't they bother to check this out?

Our favorite gelato place in Bologna. In fact, might just be our favorite for all time. And our favorite flavor..... ricotta and caramelized figs. So good!

Dogs are everywhere and people take them into all the shops and cafes. Here's a little guy who was with his owner in a cafe and might not have wanted to be there.

And finally, a very outgoing pizza guy who was so fun to talk with even though we didn't always understand each other. And the pizza was amazing too!