Friday morning, Sara and I got up and ran for the bus, as we were going on a trip to Bologna (buh-loan-yuh) with our Cultural Foundations teacher. We met the other girls from our school at the train station and when the time came, boarded the train. Well they have this quaint little habit in Italy of having All forms of transportation go on strike at the same time... un sciopero! Non fa mai qualche cosa! anywayss... so trenitalia overbooked the seats and people already had sat in our reserved seats! So... it was 8 AM and I hadn't gotten much sleep... but I got an hour long nap in the calm of First Class! yay. So when we arrived I was pleasantly surprised by this town. Its NOT tiny by any stretch. In fact, it is the capital of Emilia Romagna. The region just north east of Tuscany.
A few facts I learned about it on our fabulous day-long walking tour:
1) Fights for the prestige of having the oldest university in Europe. Was started around 1100 AD by a large group of students! Half of the city today is made up of those associated in one way or another with the University.
2) 1/3 of the population died in the mid-1300's due to the BLACK PLAGUE.
3) Praised and treasured professors like religious or monarchical figures.
4) Has the closest H&M to florence.
5) Famous for their pastas and foood! (Spaghetti Bolognese? Ravioli? Tortellini? All of it came from there!)
6) Filled with TOWERS... during the medieval times building towers on the tops of houses showed wealth and prosperity of the family. Also used as defense mechanisms... and now stand to kick tourists ass when they try to climb to the top.
7) Has an old jewish ghetto (an italian word) where the jews would be locked up in before Mussolini expelled them all during WWII.
8)Has a long and extensive canal system underground. Another reason why what is called the "Dark Ages" in Europe was actually a golden age in Bologna! To this day a very left wing city, lots of "punk e bestia" (punks with dogs) walk around. Overall, must go back very soon. Lovely sights, not many tourists (i mean what kind of tourist would think to stop at a place called Bologna!?) and great food!
The rest of the weekend was spent lounging around save pomeriggio scorsa quando sono andata al centro, specificamente Mercado San Lorenzo per fare il shopping sto solo.... (yesterday afternoon when i went downtown, specifically the San Lorenzo Market, to shop alone.)
I can survive in Italian, i had a lovely conversation with a little asian italian woman who thought i was English, an older gentleman who sold me a pair of tennis shoes and some representative from an AIDS hospice. I could understand his Italian better than his english! haha...
Anyway! PICTURES!
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Yummy Bolognese Veggies!
Yummy Bolognese Veggies!
Site of the First autopsy! Ewww... Check out the wooden figures holding up the balcony-detail... They're complete figures of the human muscle System! Made of WOOD, like.. 700 years ago!
Another Leaning Tower... And San Petronio, the patron saint of Bologna. This thing has quite the freaky lean to it.
A quote from Dante's "Inferno", which we read in class: "“As the Garisenda looks from underneath
it’s leaning side, at the moment when a cloud
Comes drifting over against the tower’s slant”
The stairway to the top of the not-crooked tower!
View from the TOP!
Birds eye view of Bologna, That big building with the small round windows is the main cathedral.
The Canal system, and a little bit of graffiti. 
A complex of 7 churches all built interconnected. They range from all times of christianity. The heptagon shaped one on the left dates back to the 4th and 5th century.. thats even before the new testament was canonized! 
Christmas Hits Bologna!
Me and Ginger, our resident Dutch Boy, Just chillin.
Me and Kellster replicating our favorite works of art: "Madonna con Bambino" (Virgin Mary with Child.) I am the angels that adorn her side in every work.
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