Today did not go according to plan. If you recall, I was supposed to meet Roberto outside of Modena. Somehow, our email correspondence broke down and I wasn't able to confirm with him any plans. But that was ok, I took a day off the bike to travel to to some of the famous cities of Emilia-Romagna.
Emilia-Romagna is defined by cities along what was an anciet road that stretched on a big diagonal across north-central Italy. Between Piacenza, just south of Milano, and Rimini, on the Adriatic coast, are a few cities you've probaly heard of. Of course, Parma, where I'm at now, known for Proscuitto di Parma and Parmignano-Reggiano (Parmesan) cheese. Then there is Modena, famous for it's Balsamic vinegar, and finally Bologna, famous for its mortadella, or as some call it, baloney. But, Bologna is famous for many other things, and being the half-way point between Piacenza and Rimini, it's the biggest city on the Emilia-Romagna chain.
My day started, confusingly. I woke up to an alarm for only the second time in two weeks, checked my email, but instead of going back to bed, I switched gears and decided today would make a great tourist day. The sun was shining and Sunday is always the better day for cycling when all the shops and museums are closed anyway.
I first stopped in Modena. Modena is similar to Parma, in both size and character. There is a big old palace there, but instead of being used as a museum, like the one in Parma, it's used to house something with the Italian military. Modena was also the home to Luciano Pavarotti, so there is a theater that bears his name, a very distinct Duomo and tower, and many narrow streets and sunny piazze. The center was a bit of a walk from the station, but quickly the wide boulevards turn to little vias and you knew you were in the center.
I didn't do much there besides walk around, climb a small tower, visit the church and then purchase some cheese at a big food market. The market was great though. For 3 Euro and change I was able to buy five bastoncini (cheese sticks) made of smoked scamorza and a half pound of baked lemon ricotta "cake", one of my favorite things in the world!
But, here's where we have to clear things up. In the US, scamorza is not at all like scamorza here, except in shape. Scamorza here is like smoked mozzarella at home, where as scamorza at home is really more like small caciocavallo. The thing is, mozzarella here is always in water. It's not something you can buy in a rubber-like block (I don't eat that shit anyway). So, if it's drier, and/or smoked, it scamorza, but if it's aged longer like scamorza in the US, it's caciocavallo. And then there is the provola, which can also be smoked. Sometimes I think smoked provola is the same as smoked scamorza. I don't know. I've never seen smoked provola at home. But, I think provola is a more southern Italian thing, whereas northern Italian cheeses are more like Swiss and French cheeses, then of course here in Emilia-Romangna you have Parmagnano. We'll anyway, cheese is super important here, but I think sometimes it's just a matter of what the "right" name is.
Where was I? Modena, right! The highlight of Modena for me was finding this great Balsamic shop on this random street outside the center of town. The shop sold nothing but Balsamic (traditional and vinegar) and some wine. The Balsamic was definitely more expensive than the wine. Balsamic is often confused with Balsamic Vinegar, that stuff that is barely aged, has cooked grape must, wine vinegar and caramel color added. That can be attained at any grocery store for a few dollars. And there is nothing wrong with it. Real Balsamic is traditionally made by aging purely uncooked grape must in oak barrels for a minimum of two years. The longer it ages, the more it reduces, the thicker it gets and the sweeter it is, and of course the more expensive it is. Then there is Aceto Balsamic which is best made with grape must and wine vinegar. It can be aged for similar amounts of time, but has more acidic bit, due to the wine vinegar. After much debate, I settled on a 12 year old Balsamic and a 10 year old Aceto. I tasted each of them, and they were my favorites. I didn't really taste anything older because I couldn't afford it. The oldest that they had was 100 years old, was sold in hand numbered 3oz bottles and cost 500 Euro. I did not add an extra zero, 500 Euro. And you thought wine was expensive! I read recently that they discovered an over-300 year old bottle of Balsamic somewhere in Italy. A few very lucky people got to try it. Honestly anything over 15 year old Balsamic is probably best consumed only on a spoon. It's that good.
So there I go again, rambling on about food. From there, I got back on the train to Bologna. Bologna is big, I knew I wouldn't see everything, but I had no intention of doing that. I don't have my Rick Steves guide book with me and frankly, I don't care. I'd rather just roam the streets, step into shops, check out cathedrals, continue my possibly endless search for that past machine, and of course, climb a tower!
Like any city, Bologna has changed a lot of the years. At one point the city was surrounded by walls and there were nearly 200 towers erected to help Bolognans ward of attacks in Medieval times. Central Italy was a feaudal mess back then, so rich familes built towers. Only a few still stand today. The tallest one is open for tourists to climb. Every trip I've take to Italy, I've climbed at least one tower. It's really fun. They're steep, kinda dangerous, definitely wouldn't be allowed in the US. Even the ticket booth was half-way up a narrow spiral staircase. It was sketchy to say the least. The wooden stairs were worn down, uneven and certainly built for people with shorter legs and smaller feet (not that mine are that big). At times, it was like being on a ladder...with traffic. Once you got to the top, the view was spectacular. Always worth the climb, just like in cycling.
Believe it or not, by the time I got back to Parma, it was well after 8pm. Perfect Italian dinner time. Everyone eats around 9:30 here it seems. I have to say one thing though: although the restaurant I ate at tonight was very good, I still think Souther Italian food is the best. Aside from the focaccia and pesto, the pizza and the olive oil and the fresh vegetables are what make the south the best. Firenze actually has a good balance. Since we're not surrounded by olive trees, instead by dairy farm of the flat land, food here is very heavy on the cheese and butter. I know, it sounds great, but honestly I am really missing my olive oil. I'm getting sick of cheese. This region may be regarded as the gastronomic heartland of Italy, but I want a marinara and something with a lot garlic and hot pepper. I want Napoletano pizza and zeppole. Southern Italy has all the best desserts too. Cookies are fine, but sfogliatella, zeppole, any type of fried dough, that wins in my book. And I'm dying for some simple semola pasta, no more tagliatelle with 00 flour and eggs. That said, my next trip to Italy will definitely include Bari and Napoli and somewhere in Calabria and Sicily too. The roads for cycling might not be as well paved, the art and architecture may not be as refined, but the people will be even warmer, probably a bit fatter, and poorer, but certainly happy.
Anyway, tomorrow has turned into today. I'm really tired from walking easily 15 miles today. Tomorrow I'll sleep in, take it slow, go for a ride and I think I'll cook myself some rustic southern Italian food for dinner.
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