Ravenna and Bologna

We had another great day trip this week. To Ravenna and Bologna, two cities in Emilia-Romagna, which is the region to the north of Tuscany. Both of them are very old, historical cities. Ravenna is known for its beautiful mosaics and one of the first Christian basilicas. The Basilica of San Vitale is a Byzantine basilica that is almost 2000 years old and absolutely beautiful. It has the shape and appearance of a flower on the inside, with a beautiful painted ceiling and the most beautiful mosaics. The colors are so vibrant. It just amazes me how people can create something like that: it must take so much patience, precision, and skill. In Ravenna also we saw a Paleo-cristian church, which has a different style of architecture, but was also covered in mosaics.

After that we went to Bologna, which ended up being my favorite. It is a little bit bigger than Ravenna and also seemed more busy and lively. The main piazza is the Piazza Nettuno, which has the famous "Neptune Fountain," which has sculptures by Giambologna, who is my favorite sculptor and did a lot of work in Bologna (hence the name!) It was especially nice there this time of year because there was a huge decorated Christmas tree in the piazza. I loved the feeling of the cold, and the hustle and bustle and seeing the Christmas lights. Bologna also has two leaning towers, though not leaning as far as the one in Pisa. All in all, it was a nice afternoon.

This week is the last week of classes. I only have two more days until Christmas break, which is taking me to so many fun places. First, I'm flying to Brussels, Belgium with five friends from school, including my boyfriend, and then heading to Amsterdam in the Netherlands for a few days. After that, I fly to Athens, Greece to meet my mother, father, and brother. We're going to do some sight-seeing there and then head to Santorini, one of the Greek Isles for Christmas. New Years will be in Venice, and then back to Florence for two days, before I hop on a train to Switzerland to meet my boyfriend and a few others for the weekend. We're planning to see Geneva and Zurich and then come back to start the next round of classes. It's going to be a crazy few weeks but I'm very excited! I want to make the most of this chance I have to travel and see new places.

Arrivederci!