Monday, September 3rd

After a busy race weekend we packed up and left Milan (read about it here) on Monday morning. Miss Sarah rejoined us for the drive to Bologna with a stop in Maranello, the land of Ferrari. We arrived around noon, stopped to eat at a German beer garden for lunch, then went to the Ferrari Museum. So many cars and awards on display; Dom was disappointed that he could not touch any of the cars. Dom did test out a few of the toy cars in the store and we walked past the factory before continuing our drive.

Checking into our hotel was tricky with so many one-way and pedestrian streets in Bologna. Chris backed the car down a street to unload the car, but then had to move it while we were still checking in. He returned the car; Sarah, myself, and the bellboy then took our bags down several streets to our apartment.  It was a small but workable space for the two nights we would be staying in the city. Once we settled in, we all walked around Bologna; discovering the Basilica di San Petronio” and piazza.  After dinner at Roberto Bistrot, including some local pasta, Sarah and Dom went back to the apartment. Chris and I walked a bit more, bought some groceries and wine before heading back as well.

Tuesday, September 4th – Dominic’s 2nd Birthday!

Dom started his second birthday with a walk to the playground with Miss Sarah. We all meet up for a bunch of yummy pastries at Pasticceria Bar Miki before taking a bus to the Ducati Museum. Dom ran around looking at motorcycles and picked out a few birthday presents from the gift shop. We all took the bus back to the apartment for nap time.

Dom woke up from his nap, played with his new Ferrari’s and Ducati for a while, then we met up with Miss Sarah who had been further exploring the city. Together we returned to the Basilica; stopping to watch the water at the Fountain of Neptune and chasing a ball around the Piazza Maggiore. This was Dom’s favorite activity – when we said it was time to go get gelato, he looked at me and said “four minutes,” so we spent more time playing. Eventually we found our way to a gelateria, then walked down several more cobblestone streets. One street led us to a quiet courtyard at the Museo Civico Archeologico (Archaeological Museum of Bologna), Dom ran around some more then we found our way back to the Piazza where we listened to the bells ring and watched the sun set.

Dom and Miss Sarah went to bed, while Chris and I stayed out for dinner at 051. We had some wine, a cheese and meat plate, and tried a local soft cheese with bread. Then it was time to go back to the apartment to rest up for our next leg of the trip.