At the station we had no map. Our guide book has map for some of the cities, but not all of them. We caught the bus we were instructed to and hoped we could work it out when we got to our stop. Which we couldn't remember the name of. Luckily there was a sign for our hotel near the bus stop. We got off and walk a bit to find it.
We arrived at Hotel Fierra and weren´t quite sure about it. It looked like a strange place to be. The place we booked was the south end of an industrial area just starting to become residential. Once we got a map I was happier about it. It was just North of the University and nightlife area. For the size of the city, it was pretty close to where we wanted to be. And cheap and huge clean rooms. And kettle for our coffee/tea.
We walked down for a while to a shopping centre to pick up groceries. I was looking forward to self catering again. Eating out with the same pizzas and pastas all the time can get very tiring. Back at the hostel we rested. We ate apricot filled biscuits and watched friends in Italian.
At night we ate tuna and veg. It was a welcome change to actually get some protein and vegetables. Roma was all carbs and more carbs. Plus I was missing my multi-vit juice.
I had 2 reasons for coming to Bologna. The sauce and the amazing nightlife. It is Europe´s oldest university with a huge student scene. We got ourselves up off our beds and turned off the TV. It was time to see if our plans for Bologna were better than for Naples. We took the bus to Piazza Maggiore,the main square. We then walked down Via Zamboni (I love that street name).
It was great. The street was old architecture, vaulted ceiling above the pedestrian streets running alongside the road. They covered old cultured buildings. Buildings that houses a multitude of trendy café and student bars. Young people spilling out into the street. Drinking beer around tables or sitting on their vespas. The air was warm and the energy of the street was tangible.
I think I fell in love with it a bit. Not to tour perhaps, their isn´t much touring to be done here. This place would be amazing to spend a semester of study. Students must come here from all over the region. There were so many attractive Italian student types,with their thick awesome glasses and magnificent hair. I didn't know where to look first.
Walking further we came to a crowded piazza with a stage set up and chairs in front. There were police blocks cars from the area. It seemed that something was happening. There was a merch stand with two girls behind it so we asked them. Turns out there was a free concert tonight, sponsored by a coffee company by the look of the posters everywhere. A free concert of My Awesome Mixtape. The name seemed vaguely familiar and Josh said he has heard it before as well. So we decided to stay for it. What a cool place this Bologna was, with its impromptu gigs in the middle of the street.
We popped into a tabacchi from was beers and returned to the stage just in time. The band was pretty good. They had casios and tambourines and an awesome electric violin. a lot of their stuff and both shouty and dancey, while other songs were a wall of sound. I enjoyed standing and taking in the vibe and sharing it with all these people. Except or the Italian, I could have been back home at some uni event.
After the gig we wondered around the streets. Everywhere we turned was full of hip young people and bars. A bit further on we heard good retro music coming from a building. Bouncers checked our bags and we walked through the building to a huge courtyard.. On one side was a while tent with a dance floor pumping out 80s tunes. Surrounding it were benches and long tables covered with people. There were also alcohol stands. It was this hidden little beer garden disco that everyone seemed to know about.
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