(The part 10 post for the workshop is in the works)
Took a slow morning to recover from class and from transit. I’m enjoying my fancy hotel after the last town. The marble bathroom is bigger than the room my bed is in. One challenge with Civita was no grocery, no convenience store, no bottled water (I need about 2L per day). A few mornings saw me refilling 2L bottles at the public faucet in the Bishops patio, as the tap water in the apt was not potable (to my palate). My Bologna hotel is also able to make reservations for me as this is high season and you can’t just waltz in to the top places. They made me a great res for my birthday dinner. I also tried contacting USK Bologna one more time but not sure anyone will be available last minute.
But first macchiato. Around the corner, an outstanding macchiato y croissant pistacc at Roxy Bar at the feet of Le due Torri. So very touristy. Just a snack & a quick sketch 45min before 1pm lunch, lol. (See 9/25 Instagram). The waiters were much happier to see me go, then when I arrived. Wow.
Brief walk to my 1pm TheFork lunch res at La Sberla bistrot for Tagliatelle Bolognese y Lambrusco y Acqua Frizzante. I am in love with Italy’s sparkling wines (and fizzy water too). I’m happy to see Franciacorte sparkling wine (aged in bottle like Champagne, very dry, just as I like it) on every menu but often they don’t have it (or don’t want to pop the cork for just me). Back to Sberla, the Bolognese sauce was very good. Pasta in Italy is practically a different dish than pasta in the US. Fresh, tender, al dente, superior sauces.
My mission today, contact lens solution, sunglasses to replace those I lost at Bologna train station, a scarf since it’s chilly, and an order for more Escoda Perla brushes for me and Susan (sizes 6 and 8). On the way to Mesticheria Bolognese (art store) I realized they wouldnt open for an another hour. What else is there to do but sketch my environment which just happened to be the Piazza del Nettune! I plopped down on the sidewalk curb which was a questionable location, not really that out of the way and silently dared the Politzei to make me move. But I can’t paint standing up. I garnered a fair share of attention and photos. I will start writing my Instagram handle on my art now. But by 4pm the breeze was really whipping my pages around.
Note on Piazzas – they are amalgams of a thousand years of pavement so the curb I was sitting in was actually 5ft from the wall. I had people passing behind and in front of me.
Since Bologna caters to the students the town is full of 20e sunglass shops and 30e shoe shops. That was exactly what I wanted to spend on sunglasses!
The 72 hour cold fermentation crust at Pistamenuccia Roman pizza was phenomenal. Almost but not quite a sourdough, very crispy, chewy, and great wheat flavor. The mortadella in the mortadella y ricotta cream is so fatty it’s practically a 2nd cheese! Fiore de zucca y alici also a top pick but I can only take so many molecules of anchovy. This pizza lover will definitely have to have this again. It almost makes me forget Napoli pizza…blasphemy I know.
